today

The verdict in the trial of imprisoned Egyptian blogger Abdel Kareem Nabil Suleiman will be delivered on 22 February, Alexandria judge Ayman al-Akazi announced. A call was made for “the maximum penalty for one who has insulted God, his Prophet and the Koran.”

Defence lawyers responded that the prosecution case was incomplete and that Suleiman could not be convicted of Internet-related offences that do not appear in Egypt’s criminal code. Nonetheless the blogger faces a possible 11 year prison sentence. Details currently here, FWIW. Abdel seems to have been civil enough.

You may say it could happen in USA, the sort of penalty inflicted by hicks in the sticks, like speeding fines in Denver and populist lynching - but that it couldn't happen in the UK. Well Tony B. Liar tried to change all that by providing life sentences for insanity - one had to do nothing wrong or even be very mad, he'd just find a local Harold Shipman type to sign some form if he fancied - but he got that turned down in the Lords, so far at least. Perhaps its just as well Thatcher isn't back, she'd simply go to the other extreme and throw all the loonies out onto the street, perhaps at the same time giving them a free bottle of cider to sit there and beg !.