File photo of Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah (R) and Egyptian
President Hosni MubarakProtesters have staged a rally outside the Saudi
embassy in Cairo to denounce Riyadh efforts to block the prosecution of
ousted Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak.
The protesters on Tuesday condemned Saudi interference in preventing the trial of Egypt’s former dictator.
The Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz was the first Arab leader to
express full support for Mubarak and to describe the Egyptian
revolutionary forces as a handful of ‘infiltrators.’
Mubarak, who was forced out of power in a popular revolution in
February, is under investigation on suspicion of involvement in the
killings of anti-regime protesters.
The state prosecutor has extended the former president’s detention for another 15 days.
Mubarak was first arrested on April 13 but has remained in a
hospital in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh. The former president
reportedly suffered heart problems during an interrogation.
Saudi billionaire Prince Al-Walid bin Talal has reportedly offered a huge amount of money in a bid to hurdle Mubarak’s trial.
Al-Walid recently met with a number of authorities in Egypt and
reportedly proposed to pay them some four billion dollars. He also
sought immunity from prosecution for Mubarak’s family.
The protesters also accuse the Saudi government of supporting radical…
