Mubarak Charged With Killing Protesters

He could get the death penalty
By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff
Posted May 24, 2011 11:40 AM CDT
Mubarak Charged With Killing Protesters
In this Nov. 18, 2008 file photo, then Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak speaks after receiving the Jawaharlal Nehru Award for International Understanding in New Delhi, India.   (AP Photo/Manish Swarup, File)

Egypt has ordered Hosni Mubarak to stand trial for the “pre-meditated killing” of protesters, among other charges—and he could face the death penalty. His two sons and a close business associate also face various charges for their alleged abuse of power to amass great wealth, the AP reports. Protesters had planned to hold a major march Friday calling for a public trial, among other reforms.

“Every time the youth threaten to go to Tahrir Square again with a huge number of protesters, I think they make some concessions,” one political scientist tells Reuters. The decision puts to bed speculation that Egypt’s military rulers would spare the 83-year-old the indignity of a trial. Analysts have warned that trying Mubarak will make other Arab leaders more reluctant to step down peacefully. Mubarak is currently in custody in a Red Sea resort hospital, and his sons are in prison. (More Hosni Mubarak stories.)

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