'I cherish my country even if it does me wrong'

President Hosni Mubarak' Cairo – Akram Ali The Head of Egypt’s Criminal Court, Judge Ahmed Refaat, addressed Mubarak in the trial’s last session, following the appeal of the defence and prosecution, stating that suspects are entitled to speak up before the Court.
Refaat stressed that all are equal before law, and that he would not discriminate against anyone in court. Mubarak let his lawyer Farid El-Deeb reply to the Judge's statement.
El-Deeb appealed against the prosecution’s recommendation to transfer the ousted President to Torah Prison Hospital, considering it a “legislative authority intervention in the judicial competence.”
The lawyer pointed out  that the Court had previously ruled that Mubarak would remain at the World Medical Centre under supervision.
As soon as El-Deeb concluded his statement, Mubarak spoke up in Court quoting a famous poetry line that translates to: “My country remains precious even if it causes me injustice, my people are generous even if they disparage me.”
El-Deeb then submitted a memo to the Court  giving evidence that Hussein Salem, the second suspect in the trial, had left the country a week before the outbreak of the January 25 revolution, denying that he escaped as rumoured.
Judge Refaat adjourned the session for the second time during the proceedings due to several statements and violations made by Abdel Aziz Amer, a civil rights attorney who was often contested by the other Court's plaintiffs. The session has been adjourned until Amer is officially out of the Court.
Cairo's Criminal Court will set on Wednesday the date for the final verdict of ousted President Hosni Mubarak's trial,  together with that of his two sons Alaa and Gamal, former Interior Minister Habib Al-Adli and six of his aides, who are accused of having killed protesters during the January 2011 revolution.
The date of the verdict is expected to be announced by Judge Ahmed Refaat, head of the Cairo Criminal Court.
On Tuesday, the Court refused to consider a lawsuit demanding the referral of Refaat to a disciplinary board, Egyptian daily Al-Masry Al-Youm reported on Wednesday.
The lawsuit was filed by the lawyer Mostafa Ghoneim, who said he considered the admission of Mubarak to the courtroom on a litter as an insult to the Court.
The Court said it has no jurisdiction to refer judges to disciplinary boards, as it is instead one of the Justice Minister’s responsibilities, which usually handles disputes between citizens and state institutions.
The Court heard on Monday the prosecution's final case and the civil rights plaintiffs on the arguments raised by the defence.
Attorney General Moustafa Suleiman said that slander and fabrication, either intentionally or unintentionally, by the defendants’ lawyers in Mubarak’s trial over the last month is against the law and requires legal action to be taken, the Daily News of Egypt reported.
Suleiman said in hs final remarks that the former President should be sentenced to the death penalty, saying he authorised the use of live ammunition and a shoot-to-kill policy against peaceful protesters.
Mohamed Abdel Fatah Al-Guindy, Habib Al-Adli’s lawyer, said in a press statement on Tuesday that his defendant will request to speak before the Court on Wednesday about the meetings carried out between him and “some authority figures” still in charge, and meetings between him and Field Marshal Tantawi, head of the Supreme Council of Armed Forces (SCAF), which also included Mubarak and the assistant to the former Interior Minister.
Meanwhile, informed sources stated that Gamal Mubarak is to speak before the Court on Wednesday to “clarify matters” and talk about the backstage meetings he held with his father during the revolution.
According to civil rights attorneys, Wednesday’s session could witness different scenarios. The most likely to happen would be the Court’s announcement of a date to issue a final verdict, which is expected to happen in a week's time.  The second scenario would see the defence arguments' hearing extended to Thursday, which would likely be the case if all defendants are given the chance to speak up in court.
The final and most unlikely scenario would see the verdict date’s announcement on the same day of the session.