Today is day seven of the protests in Egypt, and many analysts believe the uprising is about to reach a "tipping point" which will ultimately decide the future of the country. Last night thousands of protesters continued to roam the streets in open defiance of the curfew set out by President Honsi Mubarak. Efforts to intimidate the crowd with warning shots and low flyovers of military planes failed to have any effect. As the sun rose over Egypt hours ago the crowds were still out in force, many sharing food with the army soldiers surrounding them. Below one can find the latest updates on the crisis. To the left a slideshow illustrates the protests in dramatic images.
- It is now 3 p.m. in Egypt, the official start time of the curfew. Crowds appear to be again ignoring the curfew as they stay in the town squares. Al-Jazeera estimates that at least 250,000 people are gathered in Cairo alone.
- Police in Egypt have detained six journalists from the Al-Jazeera network and seized their equipment. Al-Jazeera is an Arabic-language network which has provided live coverage throughout the story in defiance of Egyptian government orders.
- Some demonstrators said they are organizing a "million-man march" around Cairo and in Alexandria on Tuesday.
- The United States State Department has urged all Americans to leave the country and is providing flights for evacuation. 177 Americans have departed from Cairo on private flights and 42 Americans have been evacuated and have now landed in Cyprus.
- The Associated Press reports that President Mubarak has now sworn in a new cabinet. The protesters appear unsatisfied with the move, still calling for President Mubarak's ouster from power.
- Almasry Alyoum reports that Mohamed Tantawi, the Egypt's Minister of Defense, has been seen with protesters in the Cairo town square. Tantawi is effectively the chief commander of the Egyptian armed forces.
- Almasry Alyoum also reports that the protesters are now demanding the army support their efforts to overthrow Mubarak. Some protesters have set out a deadline of this Friday, saying they will march on the presidential palace in Heliopolis if their demands are not met.
Comments