CAIRO- Hassan Abdel Hamid, the 9th witness in the Hosni Mubarak trial, has said on Sunday he was approached by one of the defendant's attorney in an attempt to persuade Abdel Hamid to change his testimony. The attorney in question works for the former Interior Minister, Habib al-Adly, who is facing trial for the death of some 850 people during the January 25 Revolution alongside six of his top security chiefs as well as the former President Hosni Mubarak. Mubarak and his two sons, Gamal and Alaa, are also in trial for corruption charges. Abdel Hamid told broadcaster Moataz Matar in an interview that he had a very close connection with al-Adly and often met with his family at the rowing club. Abdel Hamid has also claimed he was forced to step down from the Interior Ministry after his court testimony, during which he has claimed to have destroyed recordings which confirmed al-Adly's orders to fire on demonstrators. The trial has heard the statement of Mohamed Hussein Tantawi on Saturday, which many people hoped would be the most key piece of evidence for or against Mubarak. So far however, Tantawi's statement has proven to neither confirm nor deny the allegations, citing his absence from the meetings which may have been decisive evidence for the prosecution's case. So far, it seems that the evidence which is mounting against the defenders puts the blame largely on al-Adly, considered to be one of the most despised people in Egypt. Mubarak himself still pleads innocent and there has yet to be strong incriminating evidence against him for the killing of peaceful protesters.
