Massive anti-Saudi rally held in Cairo

Protesters have staged a rally outside the Saudi embassy in Cairo to denounce Riyadh efforts to block the prosecution of ousted Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak.

The protesters on Tuesday condemned Saudi interference in preventing the trial of Egypt’s former dictator.

The Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz was the first Arab leader to express full support for Mubarak and to describe the Egyptian revolutionary forces as a handful of ‘infiltrators.’

Mubarak, who was forced out of power in a popular revolution in February, is under investigation on suspicion of involvement in the killings of anti-regime protesters.

The state prosecutor has extended the former president’s detention for another 15 days.

Mubarak was first arrested on April 13 but has remained in a hospital in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh. The former president reportedly suffered heart problems during an interrogation.

Saudi billionaire Prince Al-Walid bin Talal has reportedly offered a huge amount of money in a bid to hurdle Mubarak’s trial.

Al-Walid recently met with a number of authorities in Egypt and reportedly proposed to pay them some four billion dollars. He also sought immunity from prosecution for Mubarak’s family.

The protesters also accuse the Saudi government of supporting radical groups that threaten Egypt’s security.

This comes after Saturday’s sectarian clashes between Salafis and Coptic Christians in Cairo left at least 12 people dead and hundreds of others wounded.

Saudi-backed forces have also destroyed more than a dozen mosques in the Persian Gulf state of Bahrain over the past few weeks.