Tensions Escalate as Egypt Prepares for Mursi Trial
Local Editor
Egypt's ousted president Mohammed Mursi has rejected the authority of the court due to try him next week for incitement to murder, his supporters said Monday.
Mursi, a former President hailing from the Muslim Brotherhood, was ousted by the military on July 3 amid massive protests against his year-long rule.
He is due to stand trial with 14 others on November 4 for "incitement to murder" in connection with deadly clashes between his supporters and opponents outside the presidential palace in December 2012.
"No lawyers will be defending president Mohammed Mursi, neither Egyptians nor foreigners, because the president does not recognize the trial or any action and processes that result from the coup," the Anti-Coup Alliance, led by the Muslim Brotherhood, said in a statement.
The group said a team of Egyptian lawyers would be attending the trial with Mursi, but only "to observe proceedings, not to defend him."
It said its statement was prompted by false reports in pro-military media outlets saying the Muslim Brotherhood had appointed lawyers from Turkey and Qatar to represent Mursi.
The group called on international human rights activists and lawyers to attend the trial to see firsthand "the trampling of justice."
Earlier Monday, three policemen were killed in the Nile Delta city of Mansoura when masked gunmen attacked a checkpoint near Mansoura University, scene of violent clashes last week between supporters and opponents of Mursi.
The state-run al-Ahram newspaper reported that three men in a car and another on a motorcycle opened fire on the police shortly before dawn. Some 60 shell casings were reportedly found at the site.
Meanwhile, observers fear that the level of violence is likely to increase as the Mursi trial approaches.
Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team
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