Mubarak, Adly conspiracy trials merged

The conspiracy trials of ousted Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and ex-Interior Minister Habib al-Adly will be merged into one, a judge ruled Monday. Judge Ahmed Refaat announced the merger and ruled the trial would not be broadcast once the case resumes Sept. 5, al-Masry al-Youm reported. Mubarak, 83, is charged with abuse of power, conspiracy, corruption and ordering security forces to shoot protesters during an 18-day revolt against his regime. About 850 Egyptian protesters were killed by security forces. The former president denies the charges. Adly is charged with the murder of protesters, conspiracy and other offenses, Egyptian officials said. Refaat said he would join the cases of Mubarak and Adly on conspiracy charges but did not speak about a request to separate the other charges, the newspaper said. The judge said lawyers for each side would give access to evidence to each other. In addition, the judge ruled defense attorneys will receive requested documents from the Administrative Monitoring Authority and the Ambulance Authority. Mubarak arrived on a stretcher Monday for the second session of his trial at the Police Academy in Cairo. Mubarak supporters and pro-revolution protesters gathered outside of the academy. Police broke up some clashes, reports said. The former president first appeared in court Aug. 3, when he was also brought in on a stretcher and placed in a cage in the courtroom next to his sons Ala\'a and Gamal. He is the first Arab head of state to stand trial in person since anti-regime protests erupted in the Middle East. In April, suffering from ill health, Mubarak was transferred to a hospital in Sharm el-Sheik and remained for treatment until his first court appearance earlier this month. Between court appearances, Mubarak is being held at the International Medical Center in Ismaliya. Prominent businessman and Mubarak confidant Hussein Salem is being tried in absentia because he fled to Spain, where he is under house arrest. Egypt is demanding his extradition.