An Alexandria appellate court has reduced the jail sentence for prominent activist Mahienour El-Masry from two years to six months, and fined her LE50,000 ($7,000), for violating Egypt’s protest law.

Activist Mahienour El-Masry’s original sentence had been issued by the Alexandria criminal court on charges of her "illegal protesting" during the Khaled Said murder retrial in December 2013 along with eight other activists.

The activists were convicted of organising an unauthorised protest, blocking off the road, assaulting a police officer and destroying a police vehicle on 2 December.

Egypt's protest law bans demonstrations not pre-approved by authorities. It was issued last November.

The initial verdict was issued in January. When it was first appealed in February, the court upheld the decision. However, as some of the defendants were sentenced in absentia, they appealed the verdict for a second time.

Mahienour El-Masry has spent two months in prison following her arrest in May.

The human rights lawyer and revolutionary socialist activist is the recipient of the 2014 arieux Award, given annually for a lawyer’s contributions to the defence of human rights.

The "Free Mahienour" campaign launched after her imprisonment was supported by pro-rights groups and campaigns, among which the April 6 Youth Movement and the Freedom for the Brave grassroots movement calling for the release of all political prisoners in Egypt.

On Monday, Mahienour El-Masry is going to stand another trial where she and nine more activists are being accused of storming Al-Raml police station in Alexandria and attacking its officers as well torching the Muslim Brotherhood headquarter in March 2013.