Judge ruled innocent on all counts in Battle of Camel Case and had to recuse himself in the retrial of Mubarak, Brotherhood lawyer tells Ahram Online
Judge Mostafa Hassan Abdullah of the Cairo Criminal Court overseeing Mubarak's retrial has recused himself on Saturday and referred the case to a different appeal court.
Speaking to Ahram Online from inside the courtroom, Muslim Brotherhood lawyer Abdel-Moneim Abdel-Maqsoud described the decision as "positive," considering that Judge Hassan Abdullah had already ruled in a similar case in 2012 and the outcome in Mubarak's retrial today would not likely be very different.
"The court made its stand clear when it ruled in favour of those accused in the Battle of the Camel... it is a wise decision [to recuse itself]."
Eleven anti-Mubarak protesters were killed and over 600 injured on 2 February, 2011 in an attack by a mob of Mubarak supporters using camels and horses on Tahrir Square.
In October, 2012, Abdullah cleared 21 top Mubarak-era officials accused of masterminding the attack on peaceful protesters of all wrongdoing.
Upon the judge's announcement, tensions escalated between the plaintiff's lawyers and lawyers of the defendants. Minor scuffles erupted between the two sides before security intervened.
The Appeal Court will set a new date and judicial district for the re-trial to resume.
https://english.ahram.org.eg/News/69107.aspx