CAIRO-A famed TV anchor, accused of killing his wife following a heated argument, will go on trial on September 13, judicial sources said on Sunday. Ihab Salah, 45, will stand trial at the Giza Criminal Court, on charges of premeditated murder and drug addiction, they added. During questioning, he admitted to killing his 35-year-old wife Magda Kamel after an eight-year marriage in their house last week due to sharp differences over an alleged affair. The defendant was quoted as saying that he had fatally shot at his wife, a businesswoman, after she had insulted and slapped him in the face during the argument. Salah had phoned the police after the murder, which he committed after returning from work from Egyptian television, and gave himself in. "She hurled offensive words at me and slapped me in the face. I rushed into the bedroom and came back with my late father's gun and shot at her," Salah was quoted as telling investigators. Neighbours said Salah and his wife had recently been in disagreement because they used to suspect he had an affair with another woman. The case has riveted the attention of the nation, with some legal experts saying that if convicted, Salah could be punished by death or hard labour in prison. Salah's lawyer, Nasr Amin, is confident that his lawyer will be cleared of the premeditated murder charge “because he had not planned to kill his wife”. “Salah confessed to shooting Magda because she drove him mad after showering his mother and sister with insulting words that forced him to painful consequences,” Amin added.
