CAIRO, March 25: Egypt sentenced 26 people, including three Britons, to between one and five years in jail on Thursday for promoting the goals of an illegal Islamist group.

Prosecutors had accused the men of spreading propaganda for a group calling for the overthrow of the government and the establishment of a pan-Islamic state with a caliph as leader.

The men were charged in 2002 as suspected members of Hizb ut-Tahrir al-Islami (Islamic Liberation Party), which says it aims to transform a corrupt society into an Islamic one.

The three Britons, Reza Pankhurst, Maajid Nawaz and Ian Nisbett, and nine other people were sentenced to five years in prison. Seven Egyptians were sentenced to three years and seven received one-year sentences in the same case, Judge Ahmed Ezzat el-Ashmawi told the high state security court.

The judge did not read out the charges. Verdicts by the high state security court must be approved by the president, in his capacity as Egypt's military ruler. He can approve the sentence, reduce it or order a retrial.

A British Embassy official said the Britons were all charged with promoting the goals of Hizb ut-Tahrir al-Islami. The possibility of an appeal would depend on the written explanation of the verdict, the official said. "When we receive this we will consult with the men and their families and lawyers before making any decision."

Meanwhile, Hizb ut-Tahrir al-Islami spokesman Imran Waheed said the authorities had used torture to force confessions from the defendants. Egypt says it investigates prisoners' claims of torture and prosecutes perpetrators. -Reuters