CAIRO 

An Egyptian court on Wednesday sentenced nine people -- including six Israelis -- to life behind bars for spying for Israel, according to a local judicial source.

In 2013, the Egyptian authorities announced they had broken up a nine-member cell linked to Israel’s Mossad spy agency.

According to Egyptian authorities, cell members had passed sensitive information to handlers in Israel about Egyptian troop movements in the Sinai Peninsula.

“North Sinai’s criminal court sentenced each of the nine defendants to life,” the judicial source said on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to media.

Seven of the defendants -- including the six Israelis -- were tried in absentia, the source added.

Wednesday’s court verdict remains subject to appeal.

Egypt was the first Arab country to recognize Israel after signing a peace treaty with the Jewish state in 1979.