The tears of the Father of Egyptian toddler sentenced to life in prison are gut-wrenching

Ahmed Mansour Qurany, age 4, was sentenced Feb. 16 along with 115 other people involved in a murderous rampage in 2014. The incident happened during a period of unrest following the 2013 ouster of Islamist President Mohamed Morsi. The sentence was handed down by a military court — a system widely criticized by rights groups for speedy trials and minimal legal protections.

During his weekend appearance on el-Ebrashy's show, the boy's father pleaded that he is a simple, respectable man. He told el-Ebrashy that he was afraid his son would go to prison.

The boy's father, identified as Mansour Qurany Ahmed, appeared Saturday  on the Egyptian talk show Al-Ashara Masa'an, prior to the military's remarks about mistaken identity.

"This father ... is afraid for his son — for this 4-year-old child," said TV host Wael el-Ebrashy said of Ahmed, who had his son sleeping on his lap. The child stirred at one point during the program, and Ebrashy jokingly remarked, "Hey, you terrorist, did you kill four people?" Young Qurany turned toward his dad and went back to sleep.

During his weekend appearance on el-Ebrashy's show, the boy's father pleaded that he is a simple, respectable man. He told el-Ebrashy that he was afraid his son would go to prison. 

"Nobody take my son away from me," he sobbed, clutching his son to his chest.