By Ghazali Ibrahim
An Egyptian court has sentenced popular television presenter Sarah Khalifa and 11 others to death by hanging after convicting them in a major synthetic drug manufacturing and trafficking case.
The Cairo Criminal Court found the defendants guilty of forming an organised criminal group involved in importing materials used to manufacture narcotics for distribution, as well as possessing unlicensed firearms and ammunition.
Khalifa, 39, is best known for presenting “Mission Impossible,” a television programme focused on crime and security.
She was arrested in Cairo in April 2025 and has consistently denied involvement in the alleged drug operation.
Authorities said more than 750kg of narcotics and drug-manufacturing materials were seized during the investigation, while two apartments allegedly used as clandestine laboratories were also discovered.
The case involved 28 defendants. Nine were sentenced to life imprisonment, while seven others were acquitted.
The death sentences were issued after the court consulted Egypt’s Grand Mufti, a required procedure in capital cases.
The Mufti’s opinion is advisory, and the defendants have the right to appeal before Egypt’s Court of Cassation.
Khalifa also received a separate five-year prison sentence in a case involving the abduction and assault of a young man.
