CAIRO: Prosecution begun against three members of the regime of deposed President Hosni Mubarak on Saturday. Former Minister of Trade and Industry Rashid Mohamed Rashid, businessman Ahmed Ezz, and the chairman of Industrial Development Authority Amr Assal face accusations of profiteering and misusing public funds for personal gain. The trial will be held in the Criminal Court of Southern Cairo, lead by counselor Mustafa Hassan Abdallah. The court increased security measures by creating a security barricade in front of its headquarters in al-Tagammu al-Khames. Security forces prevented lawyers and media from entering the court to avoid potential riots. The hearing accuses Rashid and Assal of granting Ezz's companies two licenses to produce sponge iron and billet, used in steel industries. The granting of such a license is illegal, as it must be granted by public auction. The prosecution also accused Assal of involvement with Rashid to provide Ezz with two licenses to establish factories in Suez's free zone, violating conditions which prevent granting the same investor more than one license. About 660 million EGP (U.S. $ 111 million) of public funds are believed to be lost in the deal. Arabic here
