CAIRO, March 25 (Xinhua) -- An Egyptian court on Wednesday sentenced three people to life in prison for joining the Islamic State (IS) militant group, state-run media reported.
Life in prison in Egypt means 25-year imprisonment.
Four others were handed 15 years in prison over the same charges.
The seven defendants were charged with planning for targeting the churches and military institutions in Egypt, as well as possessing highly sophisticated communication equipment, automatic weapons and explosives devices, according to the prosecution.
Egypt has suffered waves of terrorist attacks against the security personnel and premises as well as churches following the army-led ouster of Islamist former President Mohamed Morsi in 2013.
The attacks, most of which have been claimed by the IS branch in Egypt, have killed hundreds of military and police personnel.
In response, Egypt has launched a massive operation since 2018 to uproot terrorism centered mainly in North Sinai.
