An Egyptian criminal court issued on Sunday death sentences against three defendants who were convicted on terrorism-related charges in the 2014 case known in the media as the Ansar Al-Sharia case.

The court has transferred the verdicts to the country's grand mufti for a legally required but non-binding consultation.

Sunday's sentence comes nearly four years after the 23 defendants in the case were referred to criminal court.

In 2014, the defendants were charged with establishing and running the Ansar Al-Sharia terrorist group, attacking police and army personnel and institutions, as well as targeting governmental facilities and Christians and their places of worship.

The court set 14 October for issuing a final verdict for all 23 defendants in the case.

A final verdict can be still appealed.