Cairo: The trial of former Egyptian president
Hosni Mubarak in the killing of pro-democracy protesters has
been postponed till the end of December over demands that the
judges presiding over the case be replaced.
The Cairo criminal court, headed by Counsellor Ahmad
Refat, decided to postpone till December 28, the case in which
Mubarak is accused along with his two sons Ala and Gamal,
businessman Hussein Salem, former interior minister Habib
al-Adly and six of his assistants.
Mamduh Ismail, one of the lawyers for the plaintiff
families of the protesters, said the session was only a minute
long.
Mubarak and others are on trial for allegedly ordering the
kiling of protesters in the 18 day pro-democracy movement that
toppled the former president in February.
The case was postponed to allow the Appeals Court to
consider a petition made by the plaintiffs, demanding that the
panel of judges in the trial, headed by Refaat, be replaced,
local daily Al-Masry Al-Youm said.
However, the paper said that the Appeals Court judges who
received the request excused themselves from considering the
demand, notifying the court`s president of their decision.
Some of the lawyers of the plaintiffs have demanded
changes to the panel saying it had not given them sufficient
time to question Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, the chief of
the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, and a key
witness in the case.
PTI
