Tens of thousands of protesters clashed with police in Cairo Jan. 25, in the largest demonstration in Egypt in a generation. Thousands of demonstrators stood their ground in downtown Cairo’s Tahrir Square, promising to camp out overnight in a vigil to demand that long-ruling President Hosni Mubarak step down. The occupiers of Tahrir Square have withstood baton charges, water cannons and tear gas. Protests have also broken out in Alexandria, and roads are being blocked by demonstrators in the Sinai Peninsula. Large rallies are reported across the Nile Delta and the Suez Canal region. The government has blocked Twitter communications in a bid to thwart the movement’s coordination. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Egypt’s government is stable despite the demonstrations, but—in what will surely be interpreted as an ominous signal by Mubarak—added that Egyptians have the right to protest. (Tripoli Post, The Guardian, LAT AP, Jan. 25)
Also Jan. 25, Egyptian authorities arrested 19 they said have suspected links to al-Qaeda, including Tunisian and Libyan nationals. Authorities said the group was using Egypt as a transit point to establish terror cells in the Gaza Strip and elsewhere. Weapons and ammunition were reportedly confiscated. (VOA, PTI, Jan. 25)
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A Muslim associate once told
A Muslim associate once told me of an expression they use ” a known enemy is better than an unknown one”. Point here is that Mubarak my not be our true friend but the next guy could be worse. Stability needs to return to Egypt.
It isn’t all about “us”
We are more concerned about freedom for the Egyptian people than whether Mubarak is “our” (=the United States’) reliable “friend” (=client). Or was your post just an excuse to sell flower essences?