Hosni Mubarak to Face One More Trial for the Killing of Protesters

Egypt's highest appeals court has today ordered the retrial of ousted President Hosni Mubarak over the killing of protesters in 2011.

Mubarak was cleared in a retrial in November 2014 of failing to stop the deaths of hundreds of protesters during the 2011 uprising that ended his 29-year rule.

The former dictator had originally been convicted of conspiring to kill in June 2012, but a retrial was ordered on a technicality six months ago.

The judge said at the time that Mubarak's May 2011 referral to trial by prosecutors ignored the "implicit" decision that no criminal charges be filed against him when his security chief and six top aides were referred to trial by the same prosecutors two months earlier.

Related: Outrage in Egypt After Judge Clears Ex-President Mubarak of Murder Charges

That judgement marked a major setback for the young activists who spearheaded the Arab Spring uprising in January and February 2011, many of whom are now in jail or have withdrawn from politics in the face of an ongoing crackdown by authorities.

The ruling caused outrage among those who are demanding Mubarak and the security forces be held accountable for the deaths of more than 800 protesters during the 18-day revolt. Dozens of police who were charged with killing demonstrators were acquitted or given light sentences.

An appeal demanding a retrial of Mubarak's security chief and the six top police commanders, also acquitted in November, was rejected on Thursday.

Yet today's ruling set November 5 as the date for the start of the new trial for the former leader, who was in power for nearly 30 years.

Mubarak, who is 86 and in failing health, has been held in detention in a number of hospitals since his arrest in April 2011. He now resides at a military hospital in a leafy suburb just south of Cairo.

He has always insisted upon his innocence regarding the killing of protesters, saying he is coming to the end of his life "with a good conscience," reported the BBC.

Mubarak has also faced various trials and retrials for corruption, getting a three-year jail sentence for embezzlement in May 2014. The conviction was overturned in January 2015, but a retrial in May reinstated the same sentence. However his time in custody so far means he has already served that jail time.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.