Egypt's Mubarak appears in court to face charges

Cairo, Aug 25: Egypt's ousted president Hosni Mubarak today attended his trial on charges of inciting the murder of over 800 people during pro-democracy uprising, days after he was released from jail and placed under house arrest.

Mubarak, 85, arrived at the Police Academy by helicopter to attend the sixth session of his trial for killing protesters seeking his ouster in January 2011.

State-run television footage showed him in the defendants' cage along with his co-defendant interior minister, six security chiefs and his two sons.

The trial also includes accusations of wasting public funds by selling gas to Israel at low prices. Mubarak was released from jail this week but placed under house arrest by interim prime minister Hazem el-Beblawi.

He is being held at a military hospital in Cairo. He was convicted last June and sentenced to life in prison, but a retrial was ordered in January after he appealed.

He could face the death penalty in that case, and is also facing charges in several corruption cases.

At the same time, a different court adjourned the trial of Muslim Brotherhood chief Mohammed Badie and his deputy Khairat el Shater and others.

Badie, his deputies and many other leading figures of the Islamist group are facing trial for killing the protestors in front of the presidential palace last December during the tenure of ousted Islamist President Mohammed Morsi.

70-year-old Badie and deputies were not produced before the court due to security reasons following which their trial was adjourned to October 29 minutes after it opened on Sunday.

The Brotherhood leaders were arrested following the ouster of president Morsi on July 3 by the army and a deadly crackdown on the group by military-backed government that left nearly 1,000 people dead.

PTI