The Health Ministry has provided a team of doctors to accompany deposed President Hosni Mubarak as he is flown by helicopter from Sharm el-Sheikh International Hospital to the Police Academy in Cairo, where he will undergo the first session of his trial on Wednesday.
Medical sources said Mubarak’s health condition is stable but his psychological status is deteriorating.
Security forces will cordon off the academy and the roads leading to it as of 5 am on Wednesday, allowing only the plaintiffs, the defense teams and the media to pass. They will place metal detectors and trained police dogs at the entrances to the academy.
Sources said such security measures are necessary to protect the defendants, who will arrive at 7 am, from possible assaults.
They also said that the armed forces will be responsible for securing the academy from outside while the police will secure it from the inside.
They added that Mubarak’s sons, former Interior Minister Habib al-Adly and four of his aides will be moved from Tora Prison to the courtroom in a convoy of three bulletproof vehicles followed by two police cars and two motorcycles. Thirty-five police personnel will be present.
Security sources warned of clashes between the public and Mubarak’s supporters outside the courtroom. The defense team is expected to request that the trial be postponed in order to study more than 9000 pages of case documents, while Mubarak’s lawyer Farid al-Deeb is expected to request that his client be exempted from attending the proceedings due to his deteriorating health condition.
Security sources said the army is deploying extra troops to secure the Suez Canal in anticipation of possible terrorist attacks during the trial.
Translated from the Arabic Edition
