Yesterday marked the start of yet another historic event in Egypt, the trial of former president Hosni Mubarak. Throughout the morning - a time of day when normally, during Ramadan, few Egyptians would even be awake - the country was glued to live coverage of the trial on Egyptian state television. Even in the office, most people snuck off either to the cafeteria or to the gym, the two places within the compound that have televisions, to follow the news.
Highlights of the first day of the trial:
- Mubarak showed up. (Most people expected the court to issue an exception that would allow him to stay in the hospital in Sharm el Sheik instead of being transferred to Cairo.)
- The trial was not postponed. (Even once Mubarak showed up, many expected the trial to be dismissed or postponed, especially since it was to begin on the third day of Ramadan.)
- "After roughly an hour of lawyers who represent protesters making demands, including one who claimed that Mubarak had died in 2004 and been replaced by an imposter, presiding Judge Ahmed Rifaat has ordered all lawyers to take their seats." (I'm not even kidding. I couldn't have made that up if I'd tried!)
For more (serious) news on the start of the trial and peoples' reactions in Egypt, read more here.
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