Judges in Egypt Muslim Brotherhood Case Step Down

After security agencies wouldn't allow defendants to attend sessions

The judges presiding over the trial of nearly three dozen members of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood, including its top leader, stepped down Tuesday after security agencies refused to let the defendants attend the courtroom sessions, judicial officials said.

The move represented a sharp pushback from within the establishment over the conduct of the trial amid criticism by the Brotherhood that wide-ranging prosecutions of its leaders, including ousted President Mohammed Morsi and group leader Mohammed Badie, are only vengeful show trials.

Separately, a Brotherhood-led Islamist coalition said that Morsi refuses to appoint a lawyer to represent him in his trial, which is due to start on Nov. 4, because he does not recognize the tribunal or the political system in place since his ouster. Both trials are centered on charges the defendants incited deadly violence.