Filed at 11:38 a.m. ET

CAIRO, Egypt (AP) -- A court convicted a prominent Egyptian-American human rights campaigner and 27 others Monday on charges of tarnishing Egypt's image, accepting foreign money without government approval and embezzling funds.

Saad Eddin Ibrahim, 61, was sentenced to seven years in prison. The others received sentences ranging from one to seven years.

The harsh ruling was immediately condemned by activists and Ibrahim, who all along has said the charges were prompted by his political activities and the decision to set up an independent committee to monitor last year's parliamentary elections.

``This is politically motivated and the sentence is politically dictated,'' Ibrahim told The Associated Press on a mobile phone while being escorted from the courtroom to prison.

``It is a struggle and it will go on. I do not regret anything I stood for,'' he said. ``We will go to prison right now.''

Ibrahim and the 27 co-defendants were arrested in July.

Prosecutors were trying to prove that Ibrahim and associates from his Ibn Khaldun think-tank center embezzled a $250,000 grant from the European Union. Some of the funds were used for a documentary accusing the government of widespread fraud in the 1995 parliamentary election.

Ibrahim has pleaded innocent.

State security court verdicts can be appealed only before the nation's highest court. Ibrahim's lawyer, Ibrahim Saleh, said he will ask that the sentences be suspended until the Cassation court reviews the case.

There was so much shouting in the crowded courtroom that the judges left after announcing the verdict without explaining it as is customary.

``This is a very harsh ruling. It's a shock,'' Ibrahim Saleh said. ``I was sure Dr. Ibrahim would be vindicated.''

Hafez Abu Saada, secretary-general of the Egyptian Organization for Human Rights, said he was surprised the verdict was issued so fast.

The defense had wrapped up its arguments Monday, but verdicts and sentences had not been expected to be handed down the same day.

``I am not just surprised at the speed of issuing the verdict, but at the verdict itself. It was a very harsh sentence for someone his age, and his health is really poor,'' Abu Saada said.

Ibrahim remained defiant.

Ibrahim's American wife, Barbara, said the couple had the faith in Egypt's judicial system.

``We have a lot of confidence in the system here and my husband is strong,'' she said.

Nasser Amin, secretary general of the Arab Center for the Independence of the Judiciary and Lawyers, said the court rushed to close the case.

``This is a harsh action from the state. It is the case that these courts take a month at least before issuing the verdict,'' he said. ``That means the court wanted also to finish this case quickly.''

The trial was monitored by Human Rights Watch, the European Union and the U.S. Embassy in Cairo.

Among the co-defendants was Ibrahim's assistant, Nadia Abdel Nur, who received two years in jail. Khaled Fayyad, another employee of the center who testified against Ibrahim, was also sentenced to two years.