Cairo Criminal Court on Monday adjourned the trial of ousted President Hosni Mubarak and other former figures to Tuesday to hear the defense for a former prominent security chief.
Ahmed Ramzy was head of the Central Security Forces during the 25 January revolution, when his forces battled protesters in Tahrir Square. Videos show Central Security trucks running over protesters, particularly on Qasr al-Nil Bridge, which leads to the square.
Ramzy — along with former Interior Minister Habib al-Adly, Mubarak, and five other top security officers — faces charges of ordering the killing of protesters during the revolution. The former president, his sons and businessman Hussein Salem also face corruption charges.
The court heard the defense team’s arguments for Adly over the past three sessions, judicial sources told Al-Masry Al-Youm. On Tuesday, the court will hear Ramzy’s defense.
Arguments presented by Essam al-Battawy, a lawyer for Adly, outraged the plaintiffs and their lawyers.
On its website, Al-Ahram quoted Battawy as saying, “We are not defending a former regime. Our goal is to prove that Adly was not given orders to shoot protesters.”
“According to Article 59 of the Constitution, a minister cannot be put on trial except after a request is submitted to the president or the People’s Assembly in this regard,” Battawy said.
The lawyer told Al-Ahram that Adly is not a traitor, and that his longtime service for the country should not be overlooked.
Plaintiffs’ lawyers also requested that the court ban their colleague, Mohamed al-Shawaf, from attending the trial sessions because he “loses his temper and utters words that a lawyer should never say.”
They said that Shawaf’s behavior harms the remaining lawyers. They submitted a similar request to the Lawyers Syndicate to refer Shawaf to a disciplinary board.
Translated from Al-Masry Al-Youm
