CAIRO (AP) — A Libyan court on Monday sentenced 23 suspected Islamic State militants to death for launching deadly attacks that killed dozens of people, including Egyptian Coptic Christians.
The Misrata Court of Appeal in the west of the country also sentenced 14 other activists to life in prison on the same charges, including the destruction of police facilities and public property.
The court sentenced nine defendants to terms ranging from three to 12 years in prison. He acquitted five suspects.
The court did not give further details.
The Islamic State and other extremist groups exploited the chaos that engulfed Libya after the 2011 uprising that toppled and then killed longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi. They captured the coastal city of Sirte, Gaddafi’s birthplace, and other towns including Derna in eastern Libya.
The activists were eventually expelled from Sirte in December 2016 by forces fighting for the former UN-backed Government of National Accord. The forces of eastern-based commander Khalifa Hifter retook Derna two years later.
Hundreds of suspected former Islamic State fighters remain in Libyan prisons, many awaiting trial.