Egypt: Morsi’s Jailbreak Trial Begins

The jailbreak trial of the Egyptian ousted president Mohamed Morsi started at the Police Academy on Tuesday, making his second appearance in court since the army overthrew him on 3 July amid mass protests against his rule.

Morsi, wearing the white uniform designated for those detained pending trial, spent the session in a sound-proof glass cage that was set up to prevent a repeat of the interruptions he made during his first court appearance last year.

The ousted president told the court he had been flown to the trial location at 7 p.m. Cairo time the previous night and insisted he is a political prisoner, not a detainee. “I am the legitimate president of the country,” he told the court “and this trial is not legal.” The detainees chanted “Down with military rule.”

The session was not broadcast live despite an earlier announcement that it would be aired on state-run television. It was broadcast few hours later.