Ahmed Douma: Egyptian activist convicted of Morsi insult

Egyptian opposition activist Ahmed Douma was convicted and given a six-month suspended jail sentence on Monday for insulting President Mohammed Morsi. He was expected to be released the same day.

At the packed courthouse in a Cairo suburb, Douma flashed a V-for-victory from behind bars as other activists clapped and chanted: "Why is the government afraid of you, Douma?"

Douma, the first prominent critic to be convicted of such a charge, has been held since April 30 after calling the president "a killer" when referring to February's deadly security crackdown on protesters in Port Said that left 40 people dead.

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He also called Morsi a criminal and illegitimate, and criticized the Muslim Brotherhood for being responsible for a violent raid against peaceful protesters outside Morsi's office last year.

Douma has been an activist since the Mubarak years and was previously arrested for incitement and vandalism in 2012 during the SCAF rule following a clash between military personnel and protesters in front of the Egyptian cabinet headquarters near Tahrir Square.

He was beaten on March 16 alongside other activists by Muslim Brotherhood supporters while painting anti-Brotherhood graffiti outside the group's Moqattam headquarters, but did not make a legal complaint, saying he had a lack of trust in the justice system.