The trial of Hosni Mubarak took a serious turn this week, with the court's decision to admit the questioning of Tantawi, Anan and Suleiman, and defence lawyers saying witnesses have changed their testimony, Gamal Essam El-Din reports Another court hearing in the trial of deposed president Hosni Mubarak was held yesterday. This was the second in a week, with a previous hearing held Monday. As Al-Ahram Weekly was going to press, the hearing session was ongoing, with three witnesses who were former security officers testifying on the orders issued for opening fire on protesters during the 18-day 25 January Revolution. Another session is taking place today after presiding Judge Ahmed Rifaat agreed to demands by defence and civil rights lawyers as well as Essam El-Battawi, the lawyer of former interior minister, Habib El-Adli, to hear on Sunday the testimony of Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, head of the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF), on Monday Chief of Staff Lieutenant-General Sami Anan and former vice president and chief of General Intelligence Omar Suleiman on Tuesday. Minister of Interior Mansour Eissawi and his predecessor Mahmoud Wagdi's testimonies will also be heard. The sessions will convene in secrecy without public attendance or media coverage. Compared to Monday's trial session, which was marred with an unprecedented level of violent scuffles between supporters and opponents of Hosni Mubarak, inside and outside the courtroom, Wednesday's session was relatively calm. Security forces made an effective separation between Mubarak supporters, or the so-called "Sons of Mubarak", and the families of the victims of the revolution. The only clashes that took place were between the supporters of Ahli football club -- the Ahli Ultras -- and security forces. On Tuesday night, violent riots erupted between the two at a football match between Al-Ahli and Kima Aswan in Cairo Stadium. The Ultras chanted slogans against the Interior Ministry and ousted president Mubarak. The Ultras said they came to the Police Academy Wednesday, where Mubarak's trial is being held, to protest the brutal reaction of security forces against them after Tuesday's match. Inside the courtroom, lawyers defending the families of victims from the revolution took all by surprise when they showered Mubarak with insults, taking him to task for "all the setbacks that hit Egypt over 30 years". This led a number of high-profile lawyers such as Sameh Ashour, the former chairman of the Bar Association and leader of the Nasserist Party, and Mubarak's lawyer Farid El-Deeb, to withdraw from the session in protest at the "unruly behaviour". The families of the victims were further disappointed when the testimony of three witnesses favoured Mubarak and his former security chiefs. Lieutenant-General Mohamed Abdel-Hakim, a police officer with the Central Security Forces (CSF), told the court that instructions during the 28 January demonstrations (the Friday of Anger) were strict, that the CSF never use live ammunition or open fire on protesters. "I want to assure that no bullets or live ammunition was provided to security forces to open fire on protesters," said Abdel-Hakim. When asked by the Judge Rifaat, "Then who shot protesters at Tahrir Square and other places and how do you explain that many of them were shot in the neck," Abdel-Hakim replied saying, "I do not know." This testimony shocked prosecution lawyers who filed an appeal against it. Lawyers said the testimony of all police officers with the CSF was "counterfeit" and that "what Abdel-Hakim said is different from what he said during interrogation." Judge Rifaat decided to arrest Abdel-Hakim and detain him in custody. Defence lawyers objected to the arrest, accusing prosecution officials of terrorising Abdel-Hakim. Most observers agree that the trial of Mubarak, his two sons and former Interior Ministry officials took a serious turn this week, especially since Judge Rifaat barred television cameras from broadcasting the hearings live. On Monday, the trial session continued for 11 hours, during which Judge Rifaat had to adjourn proceedings five times, either to rest or to prevent the hearings from lapsing into chaos because of verbal clashes and even fistfights between lawyers on both sides. Meanwhile, police officers called as witnesses denied that they had knowledge of orders to open fire on protesters during the revolution. The officers were supposed to be testifying against the Mubarak regime and former security officers. "Their testimony is completely different from what they said during the prosecution interrogation," one prosecuting lawyer said. Major-General Hussein Said Mohamed Moussa, head of the Communications Department at the CSF, testified that on 28 January former CSF chief Ahmed Ramzi ordered that forces should only use tear gas, water cannon and tasers to disperse protesters. "He told leaders of the CSF that they should deal with protesters according to how they see the situation," said Moussa. Lieutenant-General Emad Kadri Said, who worked at the CSF operations room on 28 January, also said Ramzi's instructions were clear in that they should exercise "utmost restraint". "Even before the revolution broke out on 25 January, Ramzi always told us to deal with protesters as if they were our brothers or sons," Said noted, adding he was not aware of any orders issued for opening fire on protesters. Bassel Mohamed El-Oteifi, another officer at the CSF operations room, denied that there were orders to open fire on protesters. El-Oteifi said: "The orders were that the only situation in which forces should use fire is if protesters plan to storm the Interior Ministry. Even in this case, forces would fire in the air and on the feet," said El-Oteifi. A fourth witness -- Lieutenant-General Mahmoud Galal Abdel-Hamid -- also said that, "the personal instructions of CSF's chief, Ramzi, was that forces use tear gas and tasers to disperse protesters." In Abdel-Hamid's words, "For myself, I never used arms and I was entrusted with informing the CSF's operations room of all the events on 28 January. The instructions were sharp, that forces should exercise utmost self-restraint." When prosecuting lawyers objected to the "illogical testimonies" of the four former police officers, Judge Rifaat had to adjourn the session at 10.15pm Monday. The testimonies angered the Egyptian public, who have strong fears that prosecuting authorities may have failed in documenting the crimes of the regime during the 25 January Revolution. Ahmed Abu Baraka, a noted Muslim Brotherhood lawyer, told the Weekly that the police officers "acted like defence witnesses, not prosecution witnesses". "This shows that the case was not prepared well, or that witnesses gave false testimony, or that they might have feared that they could face trial if they said the orders were to open fire and that they obeyed their orders." Mubarak's exact role was not subject to discussion during Monday and Wednesday's hearings. The trial focussed on former senior officers, especially Ramzi. Defence lawyer El-Deeb countered that most of those shot dead were police who were attacked by protesters or thugs who seized the demonstrations to practise looting. El-Adli's lawyer asked for hearing the testimony of as many as 1,600 defence witnesses, including current Interior Minister Mansour Eissawi. El-Battawi said: "Tantawi and Suleiman got information that foreign elements -- members of the Islamist Hamas movement in control of the Palestinian Gaza Strip and the Shia militia of the Lebanese Hizbullah -- infiltrated the borders during the revolution to commit subversive and sabotaging acts, and it was necessary to use fire against them."
