Ex-speaker of parliament Fathi Sorour and Safwat El-Sherif, former chairman of the Upper House, have been referred to a criminal court along with 23 other defendants accused of involvement in the notorious “Battle of the Camel” Ex-speaker of parliament Fathi Sorour and Safwat El-Sherif, former chairman of the Upper House, have been referred to a criminal court along with 23 other defendants accused of involvement in the notorious “Battle of the Camel.” Both men, who used to be Hosni Mubarak's oligarchs, are believed to be among the masterminds of the brutal attack on 2 February, nine days ahead of the ouster of Mubarak. Former minister of manpower Aisha Abd El-Hady, renowned lawyer Mortada Mansour and his son Ahmed are also among the 25 defendants. Ex-parliamentarians Abdel Naser El-Gabri and Ibrahim Kamel, thought to have played a major role in gathering horsemen from El-Haram district and inciting them to attack the demonstrators, were also referred to the criminal court. Among the other defendants are: Maged El-Sherbini, Mohamed El-Gamrawi, Youssef Abdel Latif Hendawy, Sherif Wali, Walid Diaa El-Din, Huseein Megaweer, Ahmed Shiha, Hassan El-Tunsi, Ragab Hilal, Talaat El-Kawas, Ihab El-Omda, Ali Radwan, Said Abdel Khalek, Mohamed Ouda, Wahid Salah, Hossam El-Din Ali and Hani Abdel Raouf. They are all accused of attempted and premeditated murder. The verdict was returned at noon on Thursday, hours ahead of “Persistence Friday,” which is expected to bring out thousands to protest in Tahrir Square to call for the fulfilment of the January 25 Revolution's as yet unmet demands. Cairo's criminal court today also upheld a decision made by the Illicit Gains Apparatus to freeze the financial assets of former minister of interior Habib El-Adly, his wife and son. The Battle of the Camel refers to an incident of a group of thugs wielding swords and cudgels mounted on horses and camels, with others throwing Molotov cocktails and sniping from higher locations to kill and injure hundreds of peaceful protesters. The revolutionary youth stood their ground and capitalised on their numerical advantage to chase off and even capture some of the murderous intruders.
