Lawyers representing relatives of protesters killed and wounded in the Egyptian uprising have requested that Field Marshall Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, Egypt's senior military officer, be summoned to give evidence at the trial of former President Hosni Mubarak.
Tantawi is currently head of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF), which has been ruling the country since the fall of Mubarak in February.
The lawyers for the familes have also requested that testimony be heard from a number of former officials, as well as Armed Forces chief of staff, Lt. Gen. Sami Annan.
If summoned, the two senior officers will be asked to comment on their previous statements, in which they claim that they were asked to fire on protesters during the uprising in January and February, but refused to do so.
According to one judicial official close to the trial and who wished to remain anonymous, military personnel may be subpoenaed to testify at civil trials. However, a military court must first be notified of the names of officers being called to testify and a military judge must give his approval.
The source went on to say that the judge may refuse the request if there is not enough evidence indicating the significance of the testimony to the case.
Translated from the Arabic Edition
