Sarah Khalifa, Egyptian TV Host, Sentenced to Death for Drug Ring

Egyptian television host Sarah Khalifa has been sentenced to death for her role in an organized drug ring. 

Khalifa—who has 2.6 million followers on Instagram—denied knowledge of any drug activity, according to the Egyptian state-owned news outlet Ahram Online. She is appealing her case, her attorney told the BBC.

The sentence is death by hanging and includes a fine of 500,000 Egyptian pounds (approximately $9,800), according to the Egyptian state-owned news outlet Al-Ahram Gate. 

“The death sentences were issued after consultation with the Grand Mufti, a mandatory but non-binding procedure in capital cases,” according to Ahram Online. “The ruling remains appealable and is therefore not final.”

Eleven other defendants received death sentences, Ahram Online reported. Nine more were sentenced to life in prison and seven were acquitted of all charges. In total, 28 people were charged.

Khalifa was arrested in Cairo in April 2025. According to the outlet, prosecutors alleged she helped organize a group “specializing in importing raw materials used in the manufacture of synthetic narcotics, to produce and traffic the drugs, as well as possessing unlicensed firearms and ammunition.” 

She served as the “principal financier and liaison between members inside and outside Egypt,” prosecutors said, basing their case on testimony from 20 witnesses and digital evidence such as messages, videos and photos.  

The 39-year-old reportedly ran a beauty clinic and event planning company in Egypt and formerly hosted a local television program Mission Impossible that covered crime and other subjects. 

“I have never smoked a cigarette in my life,” Khalifa screamed during her Sept. 5 sentencing hearing at Cairo Criminal Court in a video circulating social media. “I swear to Almighty God, with the strongest oath, that I have been wronged.”

Khalifa’s attorneys did not immediately respond to a request for comment.