The Fifth Settlement Criminal Court ordered the recommencement of the trial of former president Hosni Mubarak on Saturday to hear witness testimonies from former commander-in-chief of the Egyptian Armed Forces and Chairman of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces during the 25 January Revolution Mohamed Hussein Tantawi. Other individuals to testify on 15 and 16 December include former military Chief of Staff General Sami Annan and former Chief of the Military Police General Hamdy Badeen. Badeen was set to testify on 18 November but was unable to appear in court as he is serving as the military attaché to the Egyptian consulate in China. Mubarak is being tried for his role in failing to prevent the killing of protestors during the 25 January Revolution and charges related to the illicit exportation of gas to Israel. Also facing charges are former Interior Minister Habib El-Adly, six of his aides, Gamal and Alaa Mubarak, and fugitive businessman Hussein Salem who are facing charges ranging from killing protestors to financial corruption. Alaa and Gamal Mubarak were found not guilty for the killing of protesters, but were to remain in custody for corruption charges they are facing. The six aides of Habib El-Adly are: Major General Ahmed Ramzi, former head of the Central Security Forces; Major General Adly Fayed, former head of the Department of Public Security; Major General Hassan Abdel-Rahman, former head of State Security; Major General Ismail Al-Shaer, former head of the Cairo Security Directorate; Major General Osama Al-Marasy, former head of the Giza Security Directorate; and Major General Omar Farmawi, head of the 6th of October Security Directorate. Presiding Judge Mahmoud Kamel El-Rachidi ordered a media blackout on the current sessions. On 10 June El-Rachidi banned the civil claims lawyers representing the victims from being present at the retrial for it to remain exclusive to defendants and the prosecution. The trial has been ongoing for over two years. Mubarak initially received a life sentence but the prosecution and defense attorneys appealed the sentence. On 13 January, the Court of Cassation accepted the appeal and ordered the case back to the Cairo Criminal Court for a retrial. Since the retrial the court has heard witness statements from former prime ministers Atef Ebeid and Ahmad Nazif, former Minister of Interior Ahmad Gamal Al-Din, first assistant to the interior minister for technical affairs Murtada Ibrahim AbdelRahman, former Major General Ahmed Omar Abu Saoud, and current Minister of Petroleum Sherif Ismail.
