Egypt: Well-Known TV Host and 11 Others Sentenced to Death for Drug Crimes

A Cairo court has sentenced Egyptian television host Sarah Khalifa and 11 other people to death for organized drug crimes. The sentences are to be carried out by hanging.

The court found that Khalifa played a significant role in a criminal group that manufactured and distributed illegal drugs. The group also imported materials used to produce drugs, and its members possessed unauthorized weapons and ammunition. Nine additional defendants received life sentences.

The case originally involved 28 defendants. During the investigation, authorities seized more than 750 kilograms of drugs and materials used in their manufacture. The verdict followed the court’s request for the religious opinion required by law from Egypt’s grand mufti.

Khalifa and other defendants also received five-year prison sentences in a separate case involving the kidnapping and assault of a young man. Khalifa, 39, was arrested in Cairo in April 2025 and is known in Egypt as the host of the television program Mission Impossible, which has covered security and crime. She also owns a beauty clinic and an event-production company and has more than 2.5 million Instagram followers.

Her lawyer said Khalifa plans to appeal. Amnesty International reported that Egypt issued 492 death sentences last year and carried out 23 executions.