THE judge in the trial of deposed Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak ruled yesterday TV cameras are no longer allowed in the court.
Former dictator Mubarak, 83, who was wheeled into the court on a hospital bed, faces the death penalty if he is found guilty of ordering the killing of protesters during the country’s uprising.
Judge Ahmed Refaat adjourned the case yesterday and said TV cameras would be banned from the trial in future, saying it was “in the general interest”.
Rival groups clashed outside court after the ruling. Furious Sherif Mohamed said: “This is preposterous. The case is necessary for public opinion. Not airing it live means there is a deal with Mubarak.”
But families of protesters who were killed in the uprising were pleased the judge decided to merge Mubarak’s trial with that of former Interior Minister Habib al-Adly.
Al-Adly – already sentenced to 12 years in jail for money laundering – reappeared at the Cairo court on Sunday charged with ordering the deaths of 850 demonstrators.
Mubarak, who was forced from office in February after 30 years in power, is on trial alongside his sons, Alaa and Gamal.
Source: mirror.co.uk