An Egyptian television presenter pleaded for mercy and screamed 'I've never smoked a cigarette in my life!' as she was handed the death sentence on drug charges, according to local media.
Sarah Khalifa and 11 others were sentenced to death by hanging on charges of manufacturing, promoting and trading synthetic drugs, as well as possessing and carrying firearms and ammunition without a licence.
Khalifa, 39, who is best known in Egypt for presenting 'Mission Impossible', a programme dealing with crime and security, was convicted by a Cairo court.
'I swear to Almighty God, with the strongest oath, that I have been wronged,' she is reported to have screamed from court, according to CNN.
She wept during the sentencing, begging for 'mercy and humanity', the outlet claimed.
Khalifa is also reported to have told the court how she was suffering with a tumour.
The ruling came after the court consulted the Grand Mufti of Egypt for his religious opinion, a procedure required by Egyptian law in capital cases.
The verdict is not final at this stage, and is subject to appeal.
Sarah Khalifa and 11 others were sentenced to death by hanging on charges of manufacturing, promoting and trading synthetic drugs, as well as possessing and carrying firearms and ammunition without a licence
The state-linked al-Ahram newspaper said the trial was based on 20 witness statements and photographic evidence of Khalifa’s alleged criminal activities.
The defendants are accused of using two apartments as laboratories to 'store and manufacture the drugs'.
According to the public prosecution, 'investigators seized more than 750 kilograms of synthetic narcotics and raw materials used in their production'.
An additional nine defendants were sentenced to life imprisonment and a further seven were acquitted.
Khalifa, who has 2.6million Instagram followers, was arrested in April last year.
She uses her social media platform to advertise her cosmetic surgery clinic.
The death penalty is used by Egyptian authorities for crimes including terrorism, premeditated murder, rape and drug trafficking.
The 39-year-old fronts her own Egyptian television programme and boasts more than 2.5million Instagram followers
Khalifa, who owns a production company, was also sentenced to five years in prison over a case involving the kidnapping and assault of a young man
According to Amnesty International, courts in the past have imposed death sentences 'following grossly unfair trials'.
The Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms claimed that over 500 death sentences were issued last year.
The country executed 23 prisoners.
Production company owner Khalifa was also sentenced alongside others to five years in prison over a separate case involving the kidnapping and assault of a young man.
When the case first became public in April 2025, the Ministry of Interior announced the seizure of about 200 kilograms of narcotics and raw materials, as well as gold jewelry, sums of money in local and foreign currencies, and five cars, which it said were proceeds from criminal activity, estimating the value of those seizures at about £420million.
Further investigations showed that the total amount of drugs and raw materials seized in the case exceeded 750 kilograms.
Egyptian reports estimated their market value, following manufacturing, at more than one billion.
Khalifa founded the company 'Sarah Production' and organised events and concerts inside Egypt and a number of Gulf countries.
She presented the programme 'Sarah and Beka' on YouTube in 2024, along with the festival performer Hamo Beka, which hosted artists and celebrities.
She is associated with a beauty centre in the Agouza area of Cairo, whose services she promotes online.