The trial of the two Egyptian secret policemen accused of beating and torturing 28-year-old Khalid Saeed to death was postponed until 26 February, judicial sources said on Saturday.
Khalid Saeed’s murder in Alexandria in June 2010 sparked widespread protests and the outrage of human rights groups both in Egypt and worldwide. It also led to the creation of several Facebook pages commemorating Khaled Saeed and condemning the abuses carried out by policemen in Egypt.
Defense lawyer Hafez Abu Seaida called for the death penalty for the two suspects during Saturday’s session, according to local reports. Abu Seaida raised doubts about the validity of forensic reports stating that Saeed suffocated after swallowing a roll of marijuana.
Last year, Alexandria’s District Attorney said the autopsy report ruled out the possibility that the deceased had been beaten or assaulted in any way, saying that no traces of violence had been found.
According to witnesses, Saeed was taken from an internet cafe by the plainclothes police who then hit his head repeatedly against a solid surface. Saeed’s family have claimed that he was killed after posting a video on the Internet that apparently showed police dividing the spoils of a drug bust amongst themselves.
Eventually, policemen Mahmoud Salah Mahmoud and Awad Ismail Suleiman were referred to criminal court on charges that included illegal arrest and the use of excessive force. Their trial began in July under expectancy from human rights advocacy groups.
Khaled’s Facebook page calls for staging a peaceful demonstration on Tuesday, January 25, coinciding with Police Forces Day. The demonstration is to demand “the annulment of the emergency law, the resignation of the interior minister, and increasing the minimum wage.”