Cairo Criminal Court Adjourns Mubarak Retrial To December

A Cairo criminal court adjourned on Monday ousted president Hosni Mubarak’s retrial until December so as to allow for new witness testimonies.

The retrial of Mubarak’s two sons and his interior minister Habib El-Adly was also postponed.

In the Monday session, the court ruled to defer the case to 14, 15 and 16 December in order to summon former Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) head Hussein Tantawi, former chief of staff Sami Anan, and former military police head Hamdy Badeen.

The defendants include six security aides of El-Adly, who face charges of complicity in killings during the January 25 uprising that left almost 900 protesters dead.

Mubarak’s first trial began in August 2011. One year later, the 85-year-old president and his interior minister both received life sentences in on charges of political responsibility for the killing of peaceful protesters during the 18 days that led to Mubarak’s ouster.

The verdicts were appealed for procedural improprieties in January 2013 and a retrial was opened. Mubarak, along with business tycoon Hussein Salem, also face charges of squandering public funds by selling natural gas to Israel at below market prices.

The ousted president is currently under house arrest by order of the government after serving the maximum period of two years in provisional detention.

Source : Ahram