Tunesia, Egyt and now Yemen: a domino effect in the Middle East?

How much longer can Mubarak cling on?
Robert Fisk reports from Cairo on the protests that refuse to die
Monday, 31 January 2011

Demonstrators on the streets defy tanks in Tahrir Square

The old lady in the red scarf was standing inches from the front of an American-made M1 Abrams tank of the Egyptian Third Army, right on the edge of Tahrir Square. Its soldiers were paratroops, some in red berets, others in helmets, gun barrels pointed across the square, heavy machine guns mounted on the turrets. "If they fire on the Egyptian people, Mubarak is finished," she said. "And if they don't fire on the Egyptian people, Mubarak is finished." Of such wisdom are Egyptians now possessed.

Shortly before dusk, four F-16 Falcons – again, of course, manufactured by President Barack Obama's country – came screaming over the square, echoes bouncing off the shabby grey buildings and the giant Nasserist block, as the eyes of the tens of thousands of people in the square stared upwards. "They are on our side," the cry went up from the crowds. Somehow, I didn't think so. And those tanks, new to the square, 14 in all that arrived with no slogans pained on them, their soldiers sullen and apprehensive, had not come – as the protesters fondly believed – to protect them.

But then, when I talked to an officer on one of the tanks, he burst out with a smile. "We will never fire on our people – even if we are ordered to do so," he shouted over the roar of his engine. Again, I was not so sure. President Hosni Mubarak – or perhaps we should now say "president" in quotation marks – was at the military headquarters, having appointed his new junta of former military and intelligence officers. The rumour went round the square: the old wolf would try to fight on to the end. Others said it didn't matter. "Can he kill 80 million Egyptians?" ....<cont>

What is with Miss Clinton? I can only assume you have heard of the addressives, Ms. or Mrs.

You just want to make whatever half-baked comment you please and run off without being held accountable for what you say. This is what's going to happen: When I have an agreement, disagreement or question that I think merits a comment, I'm going to make the comment - just like I do with everyone else. If your delicate sensibilities can't withstand that, put me on ignore. If you repeat that behavior when someone has the audacity to actually question what you say, pretty soon, you'll be here all by yourself, happily spewing whatever wrongheaded pablum excretes from your perfectly correct keyboard, without the pesky bother of anyone's irritating questions or redirection.

I think what may be found is that the populace in Egypt was happier under Mubarak than they will be under whatever regime they install.

The possibilities include some scary stuff. Although Arabs aren't a monolithic group, so to speak, they can get aligned together over a few things....one being a final solution for their favorite neighbor, Israel. Still, right now - hoping for self-determination through a relatively peaceful process.

And, if you will take just the slightest notice, everyone who shares an opinion on this thread is called upon to explain, support or clarify their views. So are you

'Mega protest' planned in Egypt

Opposition movement calls for "a million people demonstration" on Tuesday in a bid to topple president Hosni Mubarak.

Last Modified: 31 Jan 2011 07:19 GMT

Egyptian opposition leader Mohamed ElBaradei spoke to protesters at Tahrir Square in Cairo on Sunday [Reuters]

Egyptian protesters have called for a massive demonstration on Tuesday in a bid to force out president Hosni Mubarak from power.

The so-called April 6 Movement said it plans to have more than a million people on the streets of the capital Cairo, as anti-government sentiment reaches a fever pitch.

Several hundred demonstrators remained camped out in Tahrir square in central Cairo early on Monday morning, defying a curfew that has been extended by the army.

"It seems as if they are saying: 'We are here to stay. We are re-invigorating our movement and we are not going anywhere'," one of Al Jazeera's correspondents in Cairo said.

Protesters seem unfazed by Mubarak's pledge to institute economic and political reforms. Our correspondent said that people feel that such pledges "are too little, too late".

Early on Monday morning, unconfirmed reports said the police had been ordered back on the streets.

"We are expecting a statement by the minister of interior about whether the police are going to return or not," our correspondent said.

"The absence of police has given looters a free rein, forcing ordinary citizens to set up neighbourhood patrols. Many people are wondering where the police disappeared to.

"There are two schools of thought as far as the police are concerned: One is that many of them decided to join the protesters. The other is that the regime was saying to the people, 'You want to protest. We'll pull back the police and you feel what anarchy feels like'," our correspondent said.

A day earlier, Mohamed ElBaradei, a leading opposition figure, joined thousands of protesters in Tahrir Square.

The former head of the International Atomic Energy Agency told the crowd on Sunday night that "what we have begun cannot go back" referring to days of anti-government protests.

The National Coalition for Change, which groups several opposition movements including the Muslim Brotherhood, wants ElBaradei to negotiate with the Mubarak government.

"The people want the regime to fall," protesters chanted as ElBaradei walked to the centre of the square, holding hands with some demonstrators. ... <cont>

When you say things like this - and a few other statements that were or seemed unsupportable, this is what you can expect: to support it or withdraw it. Those have been the rules since I've been here.

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I see his government & the US as having been mutually dependent, to date.

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Lash, I have said (twice now, in response to your questions) that I do not believe the US is “controlling the protesters” or “running the revolution” in Egypt.