Egypt court sentences 36 to death for role in Coptic church bombings

A military court in Egypt Tuesday sentenced 36 people to death for their role in several deadly church bombings, their lawyers said.

In this Sunday, Dec. 11, 2016, file photo, security forces examine the scene inside the St. Mark Cathedral in central Cairo, following a bombing Source: AAP

A string of bomb attacks on Coptic churches in Cairo, Alexandria and the Nile Delta city of Tanta between 2016 and 2017 killed at least 80 people. The bombings were claimed by the Islamic State group.

According to defence lawyers, a total of 48 people appeared before the military court accused of playing a role in the attacks.

Egypt's Coptic minority makes up around 10 per cent of its 96-million-strong population, and they have been targeted on numerous occasions by IS.