Judge ends TV cover of Mubarak case, angering opponents (Reuters)

CAIRO (Reuters) – The judge presiding over the trial of Hosni Mubarak on Monday ordered TV cameras out of the courtroom until the case concludes, enraging opponents of the deposed president who vowed to challenge the decision with protests in downtown Cairo.

Mubarak is the first head of state overthrown during a wave of uprisings in the Arab world to appear in court and the TV coverage has gripped audiences across the Middle East. A public trial was a key demand of protesters who had camped in Cairo's Tahrir Square for weeks in July to press for a swift hearing.

"Preposterous!" said Sherif Mohamed, an engineer who was watching the trial outside the court building in Cairo. "The case is necessary for public opinion. Not airing it live means there is a deal with Mubarak."

"To Tahrir -- that is where I am going now. People power is stronger than people in power," said Mohamed Ali, 35.

Mubarak stands accused of authorizing the use of live ammunition to shoot protesters, of corruption and abuse of power. Judge Ahmed Refaat ordered the trial be merged with that of Mubarak's Interior Minister Habib al-Adli and six others who face similar charges in order to streamline the processes.

Supporters and opponents of Mubarak threw stones at each other and fist fights erupted near the court, set up in a police academy building in a Cairo suburb, as Mubarak flew in by helicopter for the second day of his trial and was wheeled into the courtroom's steel cage on a hospital bed.

The crowd lunged forward as Mubarak arrived and his supporters hurled stones at a group of protesters who demanded the death penalty for the 83-year-old.

The crowd broke through a cordon formed by hundreds of riot police and the Mubarak supporters chased their opponents away from the court building. One protester attacked a policeman. Then police jumped on him and beat him.

"Judge, wake up! Mubarak killed my brothers! Execute the killer!," shouted some in the crowd.

In a courtroom packed with more than 150 excited lawyers, Mubarak looked composed and stern, hands clasped over his chest. An intravenous needle was implanted in his left hand. He was not wearing the regulation white uniform of prisoners.

He exchanged a few words with his sons Alaa and Gamal, also standing trial, and spoke up to state his presence. The sons sought to shield him from cameras and one of them kissed Mubarak on the forehead to comfort him.

Ousted on February 11, Mubarak fled Cairo to the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh. Medical reports issued after he was taken to a hospital following initial questioning in April said he was suffering from heart problems, depression and fainting.

"I want people to read their history and know what this great man has done for us. He kept Egypt stable. He has been humiliated but he is weathering the storm with pride," said Ehab Sameh, 30, outside the court.

HEARING POSTPONED

For generations, Arab leaders ruled for life and were seldom held to account, but if found guilty of ordering the killings, Mubarak could in theory face the death penalty.

Some 850 people were killed in the uprising and more than 6,000 wounded when security forces fired live rounds, rubber bullets and water cannon, and used baton against protesters.

Judge Refaat postponed the hearing until September 5 after Mubarak's lawyer Farid al-Deeb requested time to view all the documents submitted to court.

Lawyers were split over whether suspending television coverage of the trial was a good thing. Monday's session was marked by rowdy exchanges and scuffles between the dozens of lawyers who pressed toward the bench to make their demands.

"The Egyptian public needs a transparent trial at this stage. If they cannot see what is happening, rumors will circulate and the degree of vagueness surrounding the trial will increase," said plaintiff lawyer Mahmoud el-Khoudary.

"It is understandable to cut live feed of this sensational trial," said Ahmed Hamrawi, a lawyer for some of the plaintiffs. "There are lawyers who are more concerned about appearing in front of the camera than putting up a good argument ... From now

the trial session will be more focused and less chaotic."

RISKS IF TRIAL DRAGS ON

Egypt's ruling military council has promised a transition to democracy in the Arab world's most populous country -- a process far from complete and, the pro-reform camp says, vulnerable to high-level obstruction.

Judging and punishing Mubarak swiftly could assuage the population and ease a peaceful transition to civilian rule.

But with so many witnesses, lawyers, plaintiffs and varied charges, it could drag on for months or years.

The cases of the defendants are interlinked and each could accuse his superior of giving the orders to fire, thus weakening the case against Mubarak, said Essam Soltan, a lawyer for the plaintiffs lawyers.

In the first court session on August 3, lawyers asked for the head of Egypt's ruling army council, Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, former intelligence chief Omar Suleiman and about 1,600 others to testify as witnesses.

Lawyers have also called for Tantawi, who was defense minister for two decades under Mubarak and heads the military council, to appear as a witness.

Mubarak's defense counsel says testimony by Tantawi on Mubarak's role in trying to suppress the 18-day uprising could decide the ex-president's fate.

"Tantawi's testimony would help the court determine whether Mubarak gave orders to Interior Minister Habib al-Adli to fire at protesters or whether Adli was acting independently," said a member of the defense team, who asked not to be named.

(Reporting by Yasmine Saleh; Writing by Tom Pfeiffer; Editing by Sami Aboudi and Jon Hemming)

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Gay weddings continue as opponents sue over NY law (AP)

NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. – Opponents of New York's gay marriage law filed the first lawsuit challenging the measure, an anticipated salvo that came Monday as dozens of same-sex couples exchanged vows in a group ceremony overlooking Niagara Falls a day after the first gay weddings.

A representative of New Yorkers for Constitutional Freedoms and a rabbi said in a lawsuit filed in state court that New York's Senate violated its own procedures and the state's open meetings law when it approved the bill last month.

The lawsuit claims that the Senate prevented lawmakers who opposed the bill from speaking and that the Senate didn't follow procedures that require a bill to go through appropriate committees before a full Senate vote.

Opponents of the gay marriage law had promised lawsuits.

"We should have an open and deliberative process," the Rev. Jason McGuire, executive director of New Yorkers for Constitutional Freedoms, told The Associated Press. "If truly the legislation can stand on its own merits then it should be able to withstand being deliberated publicly."

Spokesmen for Senate Republicans and the state's attorney general declined to comment.

Hundreds of gay couples got married starting Sunday as New York became the sixth and largest state to legalize same-sex weddings. Ceremonies were held around the state, mostly in New York City, where the day's celebration was tempered by a protest in which thousands of opponents marched to the United Nations.

On Monday, a mass wedding in Niagara Falls saw 46 same-sex couples exchange vows, and 100 more couples were expected to marry en masse at Bethpage State Park on Long Island on Tuesday. Monday night's performance of "Hair" on Broadway was to be followed on the St. James Theatre stage by the weddings of three theater couples, with actor Colman Domingo, who was ordained for the occasion, officiating.

"`Hair' has never been just a show; its message of change and hope and inclusion is one we try to live, not just preach," said Oskar Eustis, artistic director of the Public Theater, one of the producers of the show. "The entire company of this amazing production went to Washington to march for marriage equality and now we are honored to help these loving partners change the world, couple by couple."

In Niagara Falls, a light drizzle fell as partners from New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Arkansas and ranging in age from their 20s to their 60s gathered for the ceremony. A handful of opponents clasped hands in a circle and prayed quietly nearby.

"Everything we've felt and lived in our lives, it's legal," Candy Casey, of Buffalo, said after marrying her partner of 21 years, Diane Wnek. "To be able to say to the rest of the world, `Yes we count, we're legal.'"

Casey, 52, and Wnek, 59, have been wearing wedding rings for 20 years, hoping the state would someday legalize their union. They married quickly after the law changed, anticipating legal challenges such as the one filed Monday.

"We've always known our love is legitimate and now the rest of the world knows," Wnek said.

Within moments of their wedding, they and other couples set their sights on Washington and efforts to repeal the federal Defense of Marriage Act, which continues to restrict benefits like joint federal tax returns, federal health plans for spouses and access to spouses' federal pensions.

"We still have work to do," Casey said.

The New York bill was adopted the night of June 24, the last day of the legislative session after days of closed-door negotiations involving Gov. Andrew Cuomo and key lawmakers. The lawsuit claims that Cuomo improperly waived the three-day waiting period between a bill's introduction and a vote. Such waivers are common in Albany for negotiated bills.

The debate on the night of the vote was severely restricted in a manner unprecedented in recent years.

The Senate's Republican majority allowed unlimited time for supporters of the bill to speak, including Democratic Sen. Thomas Duane who sponsored it, and Republican Sen. Stephen Saland, who provided the pivotal vote. But Lt. Gov. Robert Duffy, who was presiding over the Senate, repeatedly cut off Democratic Sen. Ruben Diaz Sr., a minister who led the opposition. Diaz sought to persuade his colleagues to vote "no."

The lawsuit also claims that promises of campaign contributions were made to Republican senators who voted for the bill.

July 15 financial filings with the state Board of Elections showed that Cuomo and the four Republican senators who voted for gay marriage received large campaign donations from groups and individuals who pushed for it to be legalized.

On the night of the vote, Cuomo wouldn't say why his chief of staff spoke with Duffy on the Senate floor just before debate was cut to minutes, when Senate rules provide for four hours of debate on bills.

Rules can't be changed unless a majority of the Senate votes to change them.

Cuomo, Duffy and Senate leaders didn't respond Monday to requests for comment on the rules and how they were applied the night of the vote.

With the legal challenge ramping up, the couples married at Niagara Falls seemed unaffected as they laughed, danced and snapped photos during a champagne and cake reception under a white tent.

"I don't know after today how people can take marriage for granted," said Sharon Gerbracht, 49, who married her partner of 21 years. "It's such a privilege."

"The minute we said our vows," her partner, Nancy Gerbracht, said, "we were overwhelmed to have these rights we never thought we'd have in our lifetime."

Officials in Niagara Falls hope the ceremony will help the city perched on one of the world's great natural wonders recapture its storied identity as the world's "Honeymoon Capital."

The city has made the most of its nickname, the Rainbow City, playing on the rainbow symbol of gay pride. With its Rainbow Bridge to Canada, Rainbow Boulevard and Rainbow-themed businesses, it hopes to attract some of the business same-sex weddings will provide.

Mayor Paul Dyster had the falls lit up in rainbow hues as he officiated at the city's first same-sex wedding, timed to wrap up early Sunday at one second past midnight. He gave brides Kitty Lambert and Cheryle Rudd a picture of the illuminated falls as a gift.

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Associated Press writers Michael Gormley and Michael Hill contributed to this report from Albany.

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