Hosni Mubarak ended up in hospital which took him away from being questioned as he was “suffering heart problems.” He was being probed about the protesters who were killed along with his own alleged public funds embezzlement. Mubarak’s two sons (Gamal and Alaa) were also being questioned for corruption and then detained for 15 days.
There is mounting pressure for the ex-premier to stand trial and quickly, due to his various health issues, although no one seems to have their story quite straight vis-à-vis the 82-year-old’s precise well-being.
Military Missed the Boat
There have been significant complaints that the military failed to “pursue Mubarak and his allies” in the way they should have done since they were “protecting their own.” But there is a sense that he should be able to “bow out with dignity” given his dedicated years to the country although at the same time he is being blamed for the “emergency law [he established which] encouraged a rich and poor divide.” It seems there is the need for justice to be seen vis-à-vis the accused.
Protest Gets Pugnacious
It didn’t look too much like a peaceful protest, perhaps because it wasn’t. Whilst the army was insisting it never used live ammunition, according to medical sources there were still 13 wounded and two fatalities and troops were witnessed with machineguns pushing several people into vans.
But things did calm down. According to one member of the Revolutionary Youth Coalition, Mohamed Sukri, “we met with the (ruling) military council yesterday and discussed opening Tahrir. We agreed to end the protest and give the army a chance to proceed.” But others saw things differently. A 25-year-old who said he wasn’t part of any group, Mohamed Zaidan claimed that they were “attacked by rock-throwing people who wanted to force us out and then the army came, didn’t speak to us and suddenly moved in to force us out of the square.”
Hosni’s Home
Since he was overthrown, Hosni Mubarak has been keeping a relatively low profile. He can now be found in the Red Sea resort (Sharm el-Sheikh) in his holiday villa. However, along with his sons and their wives, he is not allowed to leave the country and all assets connected to the Mubarak’s have been frozen. But he is still working on making things right. He was reported to have said that he will do whatever he can to rebuild the reputation of his family which had been “damaged.”
The truth is, it’s not going to be an easy thing to do to clear his family’s name. The trial will be tough and Mubarak has his health issues to contend with as well. A lot has happened over the last few months and the bottom line is that the reputation of the ex-premier and his family leaves a lot to be desired.