An Egyptian TV presenter, Sarah Khalifa, was sentenced to death by hanging on Saturday after being convicted alongside 11 other defendants in a large-scale synthetic drugs trafficking case. Khalifa, a media personality and beauty clinic owner who once hosted the crime show "Mission Impossible" and has more than 2.5 million Instagram followers, was arrested in Cairo in April 2025 as part of the investigation. The case highlights the severity with which Egypt treats organised drug manufacturing and trafficking, applying capital punishment even to a prominent public figure.

The trial covered 28 defendants accused of forming an organised criminal group to manufacture and distribute synthetic narcotics, alongside charges of possessing unlicensed firearms and ammunition. Of these, 12 were sentenced to death, nine received life sentences, and seven were acquitted. Prosecutors said the network operated with divided roles for importing materials, manufacturing and distribution, storing drugs at a residential property, and seized more than 750 kilograms of synthetic narcotics and raw materials. The case relied on testimony from 20 witnesses plus digital evidence including messages, photos and videos, and authorities have frozen defendants' assets and bank accounts.