Egyptian television host Sarah Khalifa, who was sentenced to death over her alleged role in an organized drug ring, is preparing to fight the verdict.
Khalifa faces execution by hanging and is expected to sign appeal documents on Sept. 15, her lawyer, Mohamed El-Gendy, told Euronews. She has consistently denied any connection to the drug operation.
The 39-year-old was arrested in Cairo in April 2025 after prosecutors identified her as the “principal financier” of a network accused of producing and trafficking synthetic narcotics.
According to Egypt’s state-owned Ahram Online, the prosecution’s case included testimony from 20 witnesses, as well as “messages, photographs, videos, chemical testing, analysis of seized devices and a statement attributed to another defendant.”
A total of 28 people were charged in the case. Eleven, including Khalifa’s brother Mohamed, received death sentences, Euronews reported. Ahram Online said nine defendants were sentenced to life in prison and seven were acquitted.
Khalifa, who has 26 million Instagram followers, screamed and cried during a Sept. 5 court hearing.
“I have never smoked a cigarette in my life,” the cosmetic clinic owner told Cairo Criminal Court in a video circulated on social media. “I swear to Almighty God, with the strongest oath, that I have been wronged.”
Before issuing the death sentences, the court sought the opinion of the Grand Mufti, Egypt’s highest Islamic legal authority.
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“The ruling remains appealable and is therefore not final,” Ahram Online reported. “That qualification does not return the case to the status of an accusation.”
What Happens Next for Sarah Khalifa?
Under a 2024 change to Egyptian law, Khalifa has two chances to challenge the ruling, Ahram Online reported at the time.
The law made it possible for defendants to ask the courts to reconsider their convictions in an appellate trial before taking their cases to the Egyptian Court of Cassation for a final ruling.
“Previously, the accused faced a precarious situation during the issuance of the ruling,” cassation attorney Gaber Agha told Shorouk News, according to the outlet, “as they were only tried once before being directed to the Court of Cassation directly.”
When Khalifa presents her case again, the appellate court can, according to Euronews, either uphold, change or overturn the conviction.
Depending on the outcome, Khalifa can then plead to the Court of Cassation—the highest court in Egypt—whose role it is to make sure the law was applied correctly, according to the Cairo52 Legal Research Institute.
It would be Khalifa’s final stop in the judicial process.