Move comes after the former Egyptian president said he would defend himself against "unjust campaign". 
 
 The pre-recorded message was Mubarak's first public pronouncement since leaving office on February 11 [Reuters] Egypt's public prosecutor has summoned Hosni Mubarak, the former Egyptian president, and his sons as part of investigations into the killing of protesters and the alleged embezzlement of public funds. Mubarak's sons, Gamal and Alaa, have also been summoned in the embezzlement investigation, the prosecutor said in a statement on Sunday. Ahmed Nazif, the country's former prime minister, has also been detained for 15 days as part of investigations into misuse of public funds, the public prosecutor's statement said. "The phrasing of this has got to be looked at very carefully," reported Al Jazeera's Mike Hanna, in Cairo. "The word 'summoned' was not strictly used as a direct translation. What the prosecutor general has said is that he 'requests and requires' the deposed president and his two sons to answer questions relating to financial irregularities and also to the role that they played in the military crackdown that led to a number of deaths of protesters during Egypt's revolution." Hanna said that while Mubarak and his sons have only so far been requested to appear for questioning, there is weight behind the statement. "The prosecutor general has said as well that he has now notified the interior ministry of his request. This now gives this request real muscle. The assumption is that if it not obeyed or recognised, then steps could be taken to order the arrest of Mubarak and his sons." If Mubarak's questioning is to be part of a protracted and ongoing investigation process, as it appears to be, then it remains unclear whether this will appease protesters who have called for Mubarak to be immediately arrested, Hanna said. The prosecutor's office, meanwhile, also said that it had sequestered land belonging to Prince AlWaleed bin Talal, a Saudi billionaire. The land, in Toshka, in the south of the country, is part of a desert reclamation project, but the prosecutor did not immediately make it clear what the motivation behind the move was. Mubarak hits out at critics Earlier on Sunday, Mubarak, who was ousted after an 18-day popular uprising, said that he would co-operate with the country's general prosecutor during the corruption investigation, and defend himself against a campaign of "distortions, lies and incitement". In his first public message since being forced from office on February 11, Mubarak said he felt "a lot of pain" due to the "unjust campaign" against him and his family. "I cannot stay silent regarding the incitement campaign against me," he said in the pre-recorded audio message that was aired on Al Arabiya television on Sunday. Mubarak said that he had given up his position as president in "the interest of the country", and that he has "decided to stay away from politics". He said he had "waited for weeks" for the general prosecutor's office to conduct its investigations, and asserted that he did not own any assets abroad. "I agree to submit any written letters to help the general prosecutor and foreign ministry to ask any government in the world to expose my assents abroad since I took office," he said. "I want to make sure that the Egyptian people know I only own assets in a bank account inside the country." He said that he would submit written approval to the authorities to allow them to investigate his own and his family members' possible ownership of assets abroad. "All the assets I own and my sons are far from any allegations of corruption," he said. "After the legal process is complete, I reserve the right to legally pursue those who engaged in lies and distortions against me." The message was recorded at Mubarak's residence in Sharm al Shaikh on Saturday. Thousands of people gathered in Cairo's Tahrir Square to protest against Mubarak's remarks, with demonstrators decrying his denials of wrongdoing. ||||| Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak addresses the nation in this still image taken from video February 10, 2011. 
 
 CAIRO | 
 
 CAIRO (Reuters) - Hosni Mubarak was in hospital after suffering heart problems under questioning, following protests by hard-core reformists who said he was being protected from prosecution by Egypt's military rulers. 
 
 The former Egyptian president fell ill on Tuesday during an inquiry into the killing of protesters in a revolution that toppled him and into corruption in his administration. 
 
 Egypt's generals, in charge since Mubarak quit on February 11, have faced increasingly loud calls from protesters in Cairo's Tahrir Square for Mubarak and his allies to stand trial. 
 
 Soldiers on Tuesday broke up a five-day sit-in at the square, which became the epicenter of the uprising in January. 
 
 There were conflicting reports about Mubarak's condition. One report said he was in intensive care after a "heart crisis" during questioning. Another said he was fit enough to be questioned in hospital in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh. 
 
 Mubarak, 82, was ousted after a popular uprising against repression and corruption during his 30-year rule. More than 380 people were killed in mass demonstrations that police and pro-Mubarak thugs failed to crush. 
 
 The timing of his health setback may prompt skepticism among hard-core protesters who have complained about the failure of the military to pursue Mubarak and his allies more swiftly and argue that they are protecting one of their own. 
 
 There are many in Egypt's establishment who argue the elderly leader should be able to bow out with dignity after overseeing years of stability, but protesters criticize his rule by emergency law and say he encouraged a rich and poor divide. 
 
 "We want our money. We want the thief to be tried," chanted dozens of people gathered near the hospital in the glitzy resort where Mubarak spent more and more time before leaving office. 
 
 The public prosecutor summoned Mubarak on Sunday for questioning over the killing of protesters and embezzling of public funds. His two sons, Gamal and Alaa, were also added to the list of ex-ministers and officials now under investigation. 
 
 In his first public comment since stepping down, broadcast on Al Arabiya on Sunday, Mubarak denied wrongdoing. 
 
 State television said Mubarak suffered a "heart crisis" during questioning and said he had been taken into intensive care. But Al Arabiya television quoted a hospital manager as saying that Mubarak was fit enough to be questioned. 
 
 The state-owned Al Ahram newspaper reported Mubarak had been summoned to appear in a Cairo court. Its website later said the ex-president may not now have to travel because of his illness. 
 
 A judicial source said Mubarak's two sons were questioned in South Sinai, where Sharm el-Sheikh is located. Gamal, 47, Mubarak's younger son, held a top post in the ruling party and many Egyptians believed he was being groomed for high office. 
 
 CALLS FOR SWIFT TRIAL 
 
 Mubarak has suffered from health problems in recent years and went to Germany for gall bladder surgery in March 2010. There were frequent rumors about his health as he aged, particularly after his last bout of surgery. 
 
 Mubarak had vowed to die in Egypt when he addressed the country's 80 million people shortly before he stepped down. 
 
 Hundreds of thousands of Egyptians gathered again in Tahrir on Friday for one of the biggest demonstrations since Mubarak was ousted, many of them angry at the army's failure to put Mubarak and his allies on trial swiftly. 
 
 Soldiers and police used tasers and batons to try to drive out the protesters on Friday night. In resulting clashes, medical sources said 13 men were wounded by gunfire and two died. The army denied using live ammunition. 
 
 Angry protesters demanded the army hand power to civilians, but soldiers moved in on Tuesday to end the sit-in. A Reuters photographer saw hundreds of troops in the middle of Tahrir and in military vehicles at every entrance to the normally busy thoroughfare. 
 
 Troops with machineguns rounded up several young men and pushed them into vans. Others hauled coils of barbed wire used by demonstrators, and makeshift barriers erected during the protest, onto military trucks. 
 
 By early evening traffic was flowing through Tahrir, a major junction of roads that was the focus of the protests. Many ordinary Egyptians are tired of the protests that have hammered the economy and disrupted their lives. 
 
 A youth coalition that helped organize the uprising said it had persuaded the remaining protesters to reopen Tahrir because they were doing the country no good by staying. 
 
 "We met with the (ruling) military council yesterday and discussed opening Tahrir. We agreed to end the protest and give the army a chance to proceed," said Mohamed Sukri, a member of the Revolutionary Youth Coalition. 
 
 Mohamed Zaidan, who said he belonged to no group and was in the square when the army arrived, gave a different account. 
 
 "We didn't agree with anyone to clear Tahrir," said the 25-year-old. "We were attacked by rock-throwing people who wanted to force us out and then the army came, didn't speak to us and suddenly moved in to force us out of the square." 
 
 (Additional reporting by Dina Zayed, Asmaa Waguih and Marwa Awad; Writing by Edmund Blair; editing by Tim Pearce)
– Hosni Mubarak today gave his first public message since being ousted from the Egyptian presidency, defending himself and his family against “unjust” allegations of corruption. He agreed to cooperate with Egypt’s general prosecutor during the corruption investigation, but called the campaign against him “distortions, lies, and incitement,” Al Jazeera reports. Also today, Egypt’s public prosecutor summoned Mubarak and his sons as part of the investigation into alleged embezzlement and killings of protesters. Meanwhile, protests in Egypt once again turned violent, with security forces killing at least two protesters and wounding dozens more yesterday in Tahrir Square, the New York Times reports. Also yesterday, at least one protester was killed in Yemen, the Times adds. In Syria, a human rights organization says 28 were killed when security forces fired on peaceful gatherings. That report comes on the heels of reports from Friday that 37 were killed, Sky News notes.