Egypt’s ousted president Hosni Mubarak, along with his former Interior Minister Habib al-Adly, have been handed lifetime prison sentences for their complicity in the killing of protesters in 2011’s uprising.

Judge Ahmed Rifaat referred to Mubarak’s rule as “30 years of darkness”, stating that both Mubarak and Adly were complicit in a crackdown on protesters in the 18 days of demonstrations in Cairo and other major cities nationwide.

Human Rights Watch’s Joe Stork welcomed the conviction of Mubarak, calling it a “landmark conviction”, stating,

"It sends a powerful message to Egypt's future leaders that they are not above the law."

However protests have erupted in Cairo, with reports of others across the country, with the acquittal of Mubarak’s two sons on charges of corruption, and 6 other high-ranking officials for their roles in the killings.

Outside the courthouse, Ramadan Ahmed, whose son was killed in last year’s protests, told reporters,

"Justice was not served. This is a sham."

Mubarak is the first Arab leader to be tried in his own country and the first former leader to be tried in person since the start of the Arab Spring. Around 850 protesters were killed last year, mostly by gunfire from government security forces.

The verdict is released to a backdrop of boiling political tensions in the lead-up to the second round of Egypt’s first free and fair presidential election.

See our earlier post: Millions cast votes in Egyptian Presidential election (24 May 2012)