Egypt - Nov 29, 2011 - 17:23

There's been a surge of commentary under the #FreeAlaa hashtag on Twitter, as activists condemn the trial of the renowned blogger and activist, Alaa Abd El Fattah.

Abd El Fattah is being charged on 12 counts, including - as of a court hearing today, the Egyptian website Shorouk News reported  - "premeditated murder for the implementation of an act of terrorism". His case was transfered from a military court to a civilian one on Sunday, paving the way for today's new charges.

The military accuses the blogger of inciting violence on October 9, in what has become known as the Maspiro massacre.

Abd El Fattah and other activists, however, say they are being used as scapegoats, and that the military should not be in charge of an investigation of a case in which its own forces are involved in the killing of at least 27 people, and the wounding of more than 200.

A list of accusations against Abd El Fattah by the authorities can be seen here, as reported by Shorouk News (in Arabic).

His wife and fellow blogger, Manal, is due to give birth in the coming days, but her husband will most likely still be behind bars.