A Cairo criminal court on Saturday sentenced lawyer and founder of the Salafist Al-Raya party, Hazem Salah Abu-Ismail, to one year in jail for insulting the judiciary.

It is the second time he gets a prison sentence for a similar reason, having insulted a judge and refused to recognise the court in January during his trial for submitting forged papers to the presidential election committee in 2012.

The forgery trial was postponed on Saturday to 16 April.

The influential preacher, known for his close ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, was disqualified from the 2012 presidential race after reports emerged that his mother held a US passport.

Egypt law dictates that to be eligible, presidential candidates and their parents must hold only Egyptian nationality.

Abu-Ismail was detained in July 2013 during the crackdown on Islamists following the ouster of president Mohamed Morsi that month.

He was charged with inciting violence, leading to the death of nine protesters in Giza.