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WORLD NEWS Friday 21 September 2018

Egypt court orders release of former president's sons

By HAMZA HENDAWI years that followed saw
CAIRO (AP) — An Egyptian stalwarts of Mubarak's re-
court on Thursday ordered gime put on trial on cor-
the release from detention ruption or abuse of power
of former president Hosni charges, but most have
Mubarak's two sons, over- subsequently been acquit-
turning a ruling by another ted or walked free after re-
court whose judge surpris- paying part or all the funds
ingly told police to arrest they had illegally amassed.
them and send them to Second-string Mubarak
prison. loyalists have meanwhile
The judge in the Sept. 15 found their way back to
hearing ordered the deten- public life under el-Sissi,
tion of wealthy business- particularly in parliament
man Alaa and one-time and the media.
heir-apparent Gamal be- Rizq, the newspaper edi-
fore adjourning the hear- tor, sternly warned Gamal
ings until Oct. 20. The sur- Mubarak in a May article
prise decision by Judge against harboring political
Ahmed Aboul-Fetouh fol- ambitions and suggested
lowed his rejection of a he might be willing to forge
technical report that ap- an alliance with the out-
parently cleared the pair of lawed Muslim Brotherhood
any wrongdoing. This combination of Jan. 6, 2011 file images shows Gamal Mubarak, left, and Alaa Mubarak, right, to run for president when
Thursday's ruling to release attending a Christmas Eve Mass at the Coptic cathedral in Cairo, Egypt. el-Sissi's current term ends in
the Mubarak sons on a bail Associated Press 2022. q
of 100,000 pounds ($5,600)
each came just hours af- trio was later sentenced to
ter an appeals court ac- three years each for em-
cepted a motion moved bezzling funds meant for
by their defense lawyers to maintenance of presiden-
remove the judge who or- tial palaces.
dered their detention. The sons were released in
In their motion, the lawyers 2015 for time served, while
argued that the ruling was their father was freed last
"unreasonable" given that year. Separately, Mubarak
they regularly attended was acquitted after a long
hearings and their place trial of killing protesters dur-
of residence was known to ing the 18-day uprising
authorities. against his autocratic rule.
The ongoing insider trad- The Mubarak brothers have
ing trial centers on the pur- since their release fre-
chase by the two brothers quently appeared in pub-
and their alleged accom- lic, receiving a relatively
plices of a large number of warm welcome. Those ap-
shares in a local Egyptian pearances, however, have
bank that they allegedly drawn the ire of power-
knew was to become the ful supporters of general-
target of a takeover by turned-president Abdel-
Arab Gulf investors, a move Fattah el-Sissi. One of them
that was virtually certain to is Yasser Rizq, the editor of
dramatically drive up share a state newspaper who is
prices. known to be close to el-
The brothers along with Sissi.
their father were first de- Preventing Gamal from
tained two months after succeeding his father was
a popular uprising forced among the chief motives
the senior Mubarak to step for the 2011 uprising and
down in February 2011 af- the military's subsequent
ter 29 years in power. The support for the revolt. The