World Bulletin/News Desk

A senior Muslim Brotherhood member has died in prison in the Nile Delta city of Mansoura.

Safwat Khalil, 59, died in prison on Thursday, shortly after a court ruling ordering his release.

The Brotherhood leader was arrested last month along with scores of Brotherhood supporters on charges of inciting violence and possession of weapons.

But his release, along with 48 Brotherhood members, was ordered by a court on Thursday.

Khalil, who suffered from cancer, was scheduled to be released on Saturday.

A member of his defense team said the Brotherhood member's health had deteriorated after being transported to court by a police truck instead of an ambulance.

The Muslim Brotherhood has confirmed Khalil's death in prison.

"He died in the police station after his health deteriorated and police reluctance to release him after the court verdict," the group said in a statement.

Egyptian authorities have unleashed a massive crackdown on Muslim Brotherhood leaders, rounding up hundreds of the group's senior and mid-ranking members, topped by Brotherhood leader Mohamed Badie and deputies Khairat al-Shater and Rashad Bayoumi.