CAIRO: An Egyptian appeals court rejected yesterday a request that new judges be appointed for two trials involving ousted Islamist president Mohamed Mursi, judicial officials said. The trials are part of a sweeping crackdown waged against Mursi and his Muslim Brotherhood since the army overthrew him in July, and the former president could face the death penalty if convicted. The court is now expected to set a date for the resumption of each of the two trials involving jailbreak and espionage charges, the officials said. Defence lawyers had requested that a new panel of judges examine both cases involving Mursi and Brotherhood figures, complaining about a soundproof glass cage in which the accused are held when the court is in session. The special dock is designed to stop Mursi and other defendants from interrupting the proceedings, as they have done in the past.
13 car bombs rock Iraq; 18 killed
BAGHDAD: Attacks, including 13 car bombs in mainly Shia-populated areas of Iraq, killed at least 18 people yesterday, highlighting the persistent danger from militants 11 years after American forces took Baghdad. Eight car bombs struck seven separate areas of Baghdad around 10am, killing at least 11 people and wounding at least 49. In the deadliest single attack in the capital, a car bomb exploded near a traffic police office in Kadhimiyah, killing at least three people. Another car bomb exploded near a vegetable market. Five more car bombs struck various areas of Wasit province, south of Baghdad, killing at least six people.
Oppn loses bid to annul poll in Ankara
ISTANBUL: Turkey’s top elections authority yesterday rejected a bid by the country’s main opposition party to annul a controversial mayoral vote in the capital Ankara, local media said. The Supreme Electoral Board unanimously rejected the request from the Republican People’s Party (CHP), which alleged the incumbent Justice and Development Party (AKP) had won by rigging votes. The decision is the latest blow to the CHP, which lost a bid for a vote recount of the March 30 poll last week.
Car blast kills Libya Air Force officer
BENGHAZI: A Libyan Air Force officer was killed yesterday, and his wife and daughter seriously injured, when a bomb placed under his car exploded in the eastern city of Benghazi, officials said. Abdelhamid Tahar Al Imam, whose rank was not given, “was mortally wounded by the explosion,” a source at the Benghazi Medical Centre said. “His wife and daughter, who were accompanying him, are in intensive care,” he added. Agencies
