An Egyptian court has postponed its final verdict in the retrial of the country's ousted dictator Hosni Mubarak.

Mubarak, who ruled Egypt with an iron fist for almost three decades, is accused of ordering the killing of around 850 unarmed protesters during the revolution that overthrew him in 2011.

He was initially sentenced to life in prison in June 2012, but an appeals court in January 2013 threw out the guilty verdict and life sentence against the former Egyptian dictator and ordered a retrial due to some irregularities.

The Cairo Criminal Court is slated to issue a new decision on the case later on November 29.

Seven of Mubarak’s former police commanders are also standing trial over their alleged involvement in the killing of hundreds of anti-government demonstrators in 2011.

Gamal Eid, a lawyer representing Mubarak’s victims in the court, said he was not hopeful of a tough sentence against the former Egyptian ruler or the police chiefs.

“I have no confidence, given the past rulings, either against the criminals of the Mubarak regime or the revolutionaries,” Eid said.

Mubarak and his two sons, Alaa and Gamal, have been in detention since May 2011 over their involvement in the fatal clampdown on demonstrators in 2011. They also face corruption charges.

Public attention has largely been diverted from Mubarak’s case by the trial of Mohamed Morsi, the president who was ousted by the army in July 2013, and is now on trial over the deaths of anti-government protesters.

Morsi has also been implicated in two other cases. He is facing trial on charges of espionage and orchestrating a prison break in 2011.