Mubarak retrial judge withdraws
Source: Agencies |
April 14, 2013, Sunday
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Print Edition
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THE retrial of former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak collapsed yesterday when the presiding judge withdrew from the case and referred it to another court, causing an indefinite adjournment that sparked anger in the courtroom.
"The people demand the execution of Mubarak!" relatives of demonstrators killed in the 2011 uprising that overthrew him chanted in court after presiding Judge Mustafa Hassan Abdullah announced the decision at the opening session. Outside the heavily guarded compound, pro-Mubarak demonstrators outnumbered opponents. The two groups were kept apart by a police cordon and there were no incidents.
Mubarak, 84, who ruled Egypt for almost 30 years before being toppled by 18 days of Arab Spring pro-democracy unrest, waved and smiled to supporters from the defendants' cage in the courtroom before the brief hearing began. He was flown by helicopter from a military hospital where he has been detained to the police academy used as a courthouse, and wheeled from an ambulance into the building lying on a hospital trolley wearing a white tracksuit.
Mubarak, former Interior Minister Habib al-Adli and four top aides face a retrial for complicity in the murder of more than 800 protesters after the highest appeals court accepted appeals by both the defence and the prosecution in January. Two other senior interior ministry officials face lesser charges.
But the judge, who like most of the current judiciary was appointed under Mubarak, said he had decided to refer the case to the Cairo appeals court as he felt "unease" in reviewing the case. He has previously acquitted top former Mubarak era officials on charges of orchestrating violence against pro-democracy activists in Tahrir Square.
"We ask for the harshest possible sentence on Mubarak due to the cruel crimes he committed against the protesters, but we are happy with the judge's decision to withdraw as we had worries about him given his ruling (on) the camel attack case," said Mohamed Abdel Wahab, a lawyer for the victims.
"The people demand the execution of Mubarak!" relatives of demonstrators killed in the 2011 uprising that overthrew him chanted in court after presiding Judge Mustafa Hassan Abdullah announced the decision at the opening session. Outside the heavily guarded compound, pro-Mubarak demonstrators outnumbered opponents. The two groups were kept apart by a police cordon and there were no incidents.
Mubarak, 84, who ruled Egypt for almost 30 years before being toppled by 18 days of Arab Spring pro-democracy unrest, waved and smiled to supporters from the defendants' cage in the courtroom before the brief hearing began. He was flown by helicopter from a military hospital where he has been detained to the police academy used as a courthouse, and wheeled from an ambulance into the building lying on a hospital trolley wearing a white tracksuit.
Mubarak, former Interior Minister Habib al-Adli and four top aides face a retrial for complicity in the murder of more than 800 protesters after the highest appeals court accepted appeals by both the defence and the prosecution in January. Two other senior interior ministry officials face lesser charges.
But the judge, who like most of the current judiciary was appointed under Mubarak, said he had decided to refer the case to the Cairo appeals court as he felt "unease" in reviewing the case. He has previously acquitted top former Mubarak era officials on charges of orchestrating violence against pro-democracy activists in Tahrir Square.
"We ask for the harshest possible sentence on Mubarak due to the cruel crimes he committed against the protesters, but we are happy with the judge's decision to withdraw as we had worries about him given his ruling (on) the camel attack case," said Mohamed Abdel Wahab, a lawyer for the victims.
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