[JURIST] Jailed Egyptian opposition leader Ayman Nour [JURIST news archive] Thursday lost his appeal for a retrial following his December conviction [JURIST report] for forging signatures on documents registering his Al-Ghad Party [party website] for last year's presidential election {JURIST news archive]. Nour [BBC profile], who finished a distant second to President Hosni Mubarak [official website] last year in the election that observers said was marred by irregularities [JURIST report], was sentenced to five years in prison.

Egyptian law bars Nour from appealing again. He has said the charges were politically motivated. Nour supporters were reportedly beaten by police as they marched Thursday in Cairo. Reuters has more.