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The judge in the trial of Egypt's deposed President Hosni Mubarak has halted live TV coverage and ordered a merger with the trial of ex-Interior Minister Habib al-Adly.Mr Mubarak, again wheeled into court on a hospital bed, faces the death penalty if found guilty of ordering the killing of protesters in Egypt's uprising.His trial, which includes sons Alaa and Gamal, was adjourned to 5 September.Rival groups clashed outside court, with some angry at the TV ruling.Mr Mubarak was forced from office by mass demonstrations in February.Tantawi demandProceedings had begun with presiding Judge Ahmed Refaat again struggling to maintain order, referring to the fact that there were more than 100 lawyers.He repeatedly asked them to take their seats.After a recess, Judge Refaat ordered the merger of the trials, announced that live TV coverage would end "in the interest of the public" and adjourned the case to 5 September.Observers said the decision to halt live TV should make the work of the court easier, although opponents of Mr Mubarak outside appeared angry.One of them, Sherif Mohamed, told Reuters: "Preposterous! The case is necessary for public opinion. Not airing it live means there is a deal with Mubarak."Adly, who has already been sentenced to 12 years in prison for money-laundering, had reappeared in the Cairo court on Sunday on charges of killing nearly 850 demonstrators during the uprising.Lawyers for the families of protesters killed in the uprising had demanded the merging of the trials and applauded the ruling.Hundreds of riot police were on guard outside the courtroom on Monday.A number of Mubarak supporters had gathered, some chanting: "He is Egyptian until death" and "Hosni Mubarak is not Saddam". Scuffles broke out at regular intervals with anti-Mubarak protesters.A military helicopter had brought Mr Mubarak to court. State television showed the former president, wearing a blue jumpsuit, being wheeled out of an ambulance on a hospital bed. His son Alaa tried to cover the camera.Alaa and Gamal are charged with corruption, which they deny.Lawyers for the families of the demonstrators who were killed have asked for greater access to Mr Mubarak's communication records.The families want to know what orders he gave to his officials as police tried to stop the protests.Defence lawyers have meanwhile demanded that Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, who leads the military council that took over from Mr Mubarak but who was his defence minister for two decades, must testify.They say his evidence on Mr Mubarak could prove pivotal.The judge has still to rule on who will testify.Mr Mubarak's lawyer, Farid al-Deeb, has asked the judge to call 1,600 witnesses. Observers say the judge will probably reduce the list he has demanded.Mr Mubarak is reported to be in a poor state of health, and doctors have been constantly monitoring his medical condition at a military hospital near the capital.BBC Middle East editor Jeremy Bowen, in Cairo, says the Mubarak legacy touches every part of Egypt and the way they deal with it will shape the new society as it emerges.But as the violence outside the trial showed, he says, Egyptians are deeply divided about the past and about what comes next.During the previous court session on 3 August, some 3,000 soldiers and police were drafted in to maintain order.Despite that, the court session was at times unruly, with lawyers jostling and clamouring to be heard by the judge.
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