Topping coverage of Egypt in the foreign press this morning is former president Mohamed Morsi receiving a 25-year prison sentence in the Qatar espionage case. The final ruling, which the Court of Cassation issued yesterday, reduced the sentence from an original of 40 years, Reuters reports.

Egypt is giving privatization and economic reforms another go, but the impact might not be felt on the street, The Economist suggests in its print edition. The newspaper laments the small stakes on offer in the state-owned companies set to be listed, saying they “buyers’ ability to carry out restructuring.” The newspaper suggests that the potential sales “may help the state’s balance-sheet. But they will not fix dismal public infrastructure and hospitals.”

Over 250 eminent persons from some 50 countries, including 20 heads of state and government and 90 Nobel laureates, have signed a letter of support for Ismail Serageldin, Science Magazine reports. Serageldin has been handed a preliminary prison sentence, but his appeal is scheduled for this week. The letter’s signatories say they “launched this campaign and plan to send the letter with the many eminent signatures to the media.” Local figures had also penned a similar letter last month.

Other stories worth noting in brief:

• The Islamist insurgency in North Sinai is “still not really under control” four years on, despite security forces receiving bns in counterterrorism aid from the United States, the Washington Post says.
• Opinion writers at China’s Global Times hope that Egypt could become the next member of the BRICS.
• Egypt is capitalizing on high-profile visits from world leaders and celebrities, as well as slashing costs and spending mns on upgrading airport security in a bid to boost tourism, Quartz says.
• Human Rights Watch is accusing Egyptian authorities of violating the basic rights of a couple with allegedly have Ikhwan ties.