The two sons of ousted Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak were released from prison Monday, nearly four years after they were first arrested along with their father, authorities said.
Security officials said the two, wealthy businessman Alaa and Mubarak’s one-time heir apparent Gamal, walked free from Torah Prison in a southern Cairo suburb shortly after daybreak and headed to their respective homes in the capital’s upscale Heliopolis suburb.
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The release of the two sons could spark further protests and would certainly fuel the notion among the secular and liberal activists behind the 2011 uprising that the Mubarak regime has been making a comeback since President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, a general-turned-politician, took office in June.
The shooting deaths of two female protesters over the weekend have stoked renewed anger over the police’s use of excessive force and created an uproar among rights activists. The death of one of the two, a 32-year-old mother of a small boy, was captured on several videos that, activists and witnesses claim, point to the police as the perpetrators. Authorities say they are investigating the incident.
