 On 25 January mass demonstrations demanding President Hosni Mubarak's downfall erupted across Egypt, eventually overthrowing the government, including Aboul Gheit, on 11 February.In April Aboul Gheit dropped the lawsuit.According to Hafez Abu Seada of the Egyptian Organization for Human Rights, the revolution was the clear reason Aboul Gheit withdrew the suit, and had it not occurred, "the court could have handed [Qandil] a prison sentence."