An Egyptian judge issued strict guidelines Monday limiting what could be reported about the trial of a well-connected Egyptian tycoon accused of ordering the murder of a Lebanese pop star.

After throwing television cameras out of the courtroom Sunday, Judge al-Muhammadi Qunsuwa allowed reporters to attend Monday’s session _ as long as they didn’t have mobile phones and audio recorders. But he restricted what they could report to vague procedural information and the verdict.

The trial of Hisham Talaat Moustafa has ignited a media frenzy across Egypt and the Middle East, where many were stunned by the arrest of the prominent real estate mogul and lawmaker. The case crosses borders with an accused Egyptian tycoon, a dead Lebanese singer and a slaying taking place in a luxury Dubai high rise.

Moustafa is a close friend of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak’s son, Gamal, and part of a powerful group long seen as above the law in Egypt’s strict, class-based society.

He is charged with ordering the death of Lebanese pop singer Suzanne Tamim, with whom he was said to have been romantically involved. The prosecution alleges Moustafa paid a former Egyptian policeman, Mohsen el-Sukkary, $2 million to carry out the killing.

Moustafa and el-Sukkary have denied the accusations.

During Monday’s session, Qunsuwa listened to testimony by a second witness and summoned two Dubai-based doctors who supervised Tamim’s autopsy to give their testimony on Dec. 20, according to a statement by the judge released to reporters after the hearing. Journalists were barred from reporting on anything more than the statement.

An Egyptian-based human rights group criticized the restrictions placed on media covering the trial.

“The news blackout imposed in this case is purely for political and personal reasons,” said Radwa Ahmed, an attorney for the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information, citing Moustafa’s close ties Gamal Mubarak.