JURIST - Paper Chase: Mubarak detention extended, name removed from buildings

[JURIST] Egyptian public prosecutor Abdel Meguid Mahmud on Friday ordered a 15-day extension of the detention of former president Hosni Mubarak [Al Jazeera profile; JURIST news archive], giving authorities more time to decide if they want to send him to jail or a prison hospital. The news comes shortly after an Egyptian court's decision to remove Mubarak's name [Guardian report], along with his wife's, from all public buildings in the nation. Estimates range in the thousands as to how many subway stations, schools, streets, squares and libraries bear the former leader's name. There have been conflicting reports over Mubarak's current health, but he appears to be in unstable condition [Times of India report]. Mubarak was previously moved to a hospital to recover from an unspecified ailment, causing a delay in questioning [JURIST report] regarding his alleged roles in protester deaths and embezzlement of government money. Investigators have been interrogating Mubarak by visiting his temporary home in the resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh to question him.

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Last week, an Egyptian court ordered that Mubarak's political party be dissolved [JURIST report]. It would be illogical [Reuters report] for Mubarak's National Democratic Party, which took control in 1978, to remain an entity, the country's High Administrative Court said. The court also liquidated the party's assets. Analysts call the court's decision an important step in the building of a multi-party system, which the country has not had for more than 30 years. In a televised statement last week, Mubarak denied the corruption charges [BBC report] against him, asserted his right to defend his reputation and expressed his willingness to cooperate [Al Arabiya report] with investigations, denying that he owns property abroad or holds foreign bank accounts.