Hosni Mubarak

Six months after being forced to step down as President in the face of a wave of protests across Cairo and other major cities, today former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak became one of the few Arab leaders in recent history to be put on trial by his own people. Mubarak was wheeled into court on a hospital stretcher on Wednesday August 3, where he was formally charged with corruption and causing the deaths of scores of protestors in Tahrir square calling for him to step down. Hosni Mubarak was Egypt's president for 30 years, assuming power in 1981 after the assassination of Anwar Sadat at a military parade in Cairo. Mubarak who was vice president at the time, was sitting next to Sadat when he was shot at. During his tenure, Mubarak would become no stranger to threats to his own life, surviving up to six assassination attempts. [caption id="attachment_53246" align="alignleft" width="380" caption="Former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak is seen in the courtroom for his trial at the Police Academy in Cairo on Wednesday. Egypt's fallen leader, Hosni Mubarak, went on trial on Wednesday over his role in killing protesters, in a stark message to Arab rulers elsewhere that they too may one day be held to account. Reuters"][/caption]Mubarak was known as a draconian leader. For his entire period in office, he kept the country under emergency law, giving the state sweeping powers of arrest and curbing basic freedoms. He also heavily repressed any opposition to his rule, arguing that the methods were necessary to combat Islamist terrorism. He extended his rule thrice through conducting referendums in 1987, 1993 and 1999. However under increasing international pressure, he conducted presidential elections for the first time in 2005. Although Mubarak won the elections, the polls were marred by allegations of vote rigging and buying, and Ayman Nour, Mubarak's main opposition was later jailed on charges of forgery. Apart from the curtailment of personal freedom and liberties, Mubarak's regime was also marked by a high incidence of both political and financial corruption. A Transparency International report in 2010, ranked Egypt one of the most corrupt countries in the world. In January 2011, a series of mass protests against Mubarak began in Egypt, calling for him to step down. Despite repeated attempts to disperse the protestors by force, the strength and numbers of people kept growing. Finally after the army also withdrew its support for him, Mubarak stepped down on February 11 2011. He has been under house arrest in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh. On May 24, Mubarak was ordered to stand trial on charges of premeditated murder of peaceful protestors during the 2011 Egyptian revolution and, if convicted, could face the death penalty.