Hosni Mubarak: Egypt court drops charges over 2011 uprising deaths

A court in Egypt has dropped charges against former President Hosni Mubarak over the killing of 239 protesters during the 2011 uprising against him.

The Cairo court erupted in cheers when the judge said Mubarak should not have been a defendant in the case as the charges against him were added late. Charges against seven senior ex-officials were also dropped. The decision could be appealed. Victims' relatives waiting outside expressed dismay and frustration. And later police fired tear gas to disperse a crowd of about 2,000 people who gathered near Tahrir Square to voice their opposition to the decision. In a TV interview after the ruling, Mubarak said he had done "nothing wrong at all". The former president, 86, is serving a separate three-year sentence for embezzlement of public funds.