Mubarak calls on Assad to step down

Ousted Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak criticized Syrian President Bashar al Assad and his regime because of "the violence and crimes committed against the Syrian people". In Wednesday’s edition, the Egyptian newspaper "Republic" quoted from a source close to Mubarak, who is under trial on various charges like ordering the killing of demonstrators, that "Mubarak advised Assad to step down from the presidency of Syria and to respond to the demands of Syrian people." Also quoted from the same source that Mubarak lives in a state of grief and depression after he was surprised upon his arrival to the Medical Center from his first trial session, by the decision of the Attorney General to withdraw private security guards who accompanied him since he stepped down on 11th February leaving him only a Dean named Shaheen. The source added that Mubarak felt sad because his trial started in the first days of Ramadan; recalling the executionof former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein on the morning of Eid al-Adha. Additionally, the source quoted that Mubarak said that he refused to escape out of Egypt, and agreed to attend the trial and be put in that cage "to prove his innocence of the charges against him". Furthermore, the source also quoted Mubarak's oath "I swear, I'm innocent and I ordered no one to kill anyone", expressing deep sorrow for what he considers insulting to him in some newspapers and TV channels.   "Republic" said that it isn't allowed to enter Mubarak's suite at the medical center, as only his two doctors, two nurses, two security officers and his nephew Tariq are allowed in, in addition to his wife Suzanne who is always by his bedside.