The Cairo Criminal Court postponed Saturday the trial of Egyptian steel tycoon Ahmed Ezz over the illegal sale of steel licences case and adjourned the espionage trial against former Islamist president Mohamed Morsi. The court postponed the trial against Ezz and former Industrial Development Authority head Amr Assal to 6 March. The Court of Cassations previously cancelled the ruling, ordering a retrial for the defendants. Ezz and Assal were sentenced to prison for ten years, while former Minister of Trade and Industry Rachid Mohamad Rachid was sentenced to 15 years in absentia. Ezz was charged with acquiring free illegal licences for the operation of his steel factories with the help of Assal and Rachid. The licence acquisitions were in violation of laws that stipulate that licences must be granted through open bids. In a separate trial, the court postponed the ongoing espionage trial against Morsi and ten other defendants to 16 December. The defendants are accused of leaking important national security documents and information on the Egyptian army to Qatar during Morsi's year-long tenure that ended in July 2013. In September 2014, late prosecutor general Hisham Barakat had referred the defendants to criminal court on charges of illegally obtaining copies of intelligence reports and confidential reports on the armed forces' plans. They were also accused of intending to deliver the documents to the Qatari satellite network Al-Jazeera.
