Former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak Portrayed as 'Negligent Tyrant' in Court
Egypt's ex-President Hosni Mubarak is not only a dictator but also a "tyrannical leader" who is politically and legally responsible for the crimes inflicted upon civilian protesters leading up to the Jan. 25 revolution, according to prosecutors in his case.
Mubarak's heart problems have resulted in his stay at a military hospital near Cairo. He arrived at his 16th session of court Thursday late, wearing sunglasses as he lay in a hospital gurney.
Chief prosecutor Mustafa Suleiman said Thursday in his closing argument that Mubarak was aware of the killing of protesters during the Jan. 25 revolution, and did nothing to stop the bloodshed. He also allegedly approved the use of live rounds on protesters. An estimated 850 protesters reportedly died in those incidents.
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When the prosecution began on Tuesday, Suleiman referred to Mubarak, 83, as “a tyrannical leader who sought to hand power to his younger son Gamal, who spread corruption in the country and opened the door to his friends and relatives, ruining the country without any accountability."
The country’s former interior minister, Habib El Adly, and six of Mubarak's aides also face charges of complicity in the killing of protesters during the beginning of the Jan. 25 revolution, which sought to oust an oppressive Mubarak from his seat as president. Mubarak’s two sons have been charged with corruption.
According to the Egypt Independent, the prosecution said they interviewed 2,000 witnesses, including police officers who say their superiors ordered them to arm troops with live rounds to be used against protesters.
Supreme Council of Armed Forces Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi also testified in a closed court proceeding, but he allegedly did not connect Mubarak to the killing of protesters.
Mubarak’s trial is considered historic because he is the first leader to be brought to trial as a result of the Arab Spring uprisings.
