Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi (right) swearing in new Prosecutor-General Talaat Ibrahim (left) Cairo – Akram Ali Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi issued a constitutional declaration late on Thursday which included the decision to launch fresh investigations and retrials of former President Hosni Mubarak’s officials. A special prosecution team has been formed to focus on looking into the violent crimes committed against protesters.
The Protection of the Revolution law will govern the process of putting on trial once again,  Mubarak’s officials found to be involved in the murder, attempted murder or conducting acts of “terrorism” against protesters. It provides a retrial in case new evidence is found. The decree also criminalises the act of hiding information about the perpetrators and abstaining from handing in evidence implicating them.
This follows Morsi’s decision to dismiss the current Public Prosecutor, Abdulmegeid Mahmoud, from his office and appoint Talaat Ibrahim Mohammed for the four-year term instead.
The re-investigation decree has received mixed responses from officials - with some describing it as revolutionary whilst others as a move towards autocracy.
The Judge’s Club announced an emergency meeting to respond to the decisions, as opposition forces called for a sit-in at Tahrir Square on Friday.
One member of Egypt’s Supreme Constitutional Court said the legal institution was “prepared to use its right to dismiss the President for the first time in Egypt’s history” due to the decrees issued today.
After the official announcements, Morsi tweeted: “Today is the beginning of a true and just retribution for the blood of the martyrs - a charge with which I have been entrusted.”