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Mubarak conviction doubtful, skeptic says

Video image taken from Egyptian State Television shows former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, 83, wearing white prison clothes,in a hospital bed inside a cage in a Cairo courtroom, August 3, 2011. Mubarak and his two sons, Alaa and Gamal, are being tried on charges of corruption and ordering the killing of protesters during the revolution that ended his reign after 18 days of popular protest. UPI/Debbie Hill
Video image taken from Egyptian State Television shows former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, 83, wearing white prison clothes,in a hospital bed inside a cage in a Cairo courtroom, August 3, 2011. Mubarak and his two sons, Alaa and Gamal, are being tried on charges of corruption and ordering the killing of protesters during the revolution that ended his reign after 18 days of popular protest. UPI/Debbie Hill | License Photo

CAIRO, Jan. 4 (UPI) -- There are doubts that the trial of deposed Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak will lead to a conviction, a human rights lawyer said.

Mubarak was arrested in April after he was ousted during a revolution that began in January 2011. He faces murder charges along with his sons and members of his former Cabinet.

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Gamal Eid, a human rights lawyer in Egypt, told the Financial Times that trial was something of a farce meant to allay public concerns.

"There are strong doubts (about a possible conviction)," he said. "We already have two other cases in which police officers were acquitted of charges of killing protesters. It is not the fault of the judges but rather the cases were based on weak and shoddy investigations."

Mustapha Suleiman, the prosecutor in the case against Mubarak, said that while the 83-year-old president likely didn't give direct orders to shoot demonstrators, he and members of his inner circle were "instigators," the Financial Times adds.

A witness in the trial testified last year that former Interior Minister Habib al-Adly gave orders to put weapons in the hands of the police at the height of the revolution.

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The witness, a lieutenant, handed over footage contained on a CD showing shootings that took place Jan. 28. He said Mubarak and Adly were responsible for the deaths of protesters.

More than 800 demonstrators were killed during the revolution that toppled Mubarak's regime. Mubarak denies the charges against him.

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