Month: January 2011

by Chris Bodenner

Early figures via EA:

1940 GMT: Al Jazeera English reporter just confirmed that there have been at least 5 people have been killed in Suez. That plus the one death in Egypt brings the total number of deaths in the protests today to six. 

1936 GMT: We are only now getting a good picture of how many people have been injured. Reports suggest hundreds of people have sustaiend wounds during clashes with security forces and as clashes continue, the numbers are likely to rise. Al Jazeera English just reported that hospitals in the country have been overwhelmed by the number of injured.

(Photo of an injured boy overcome by tear gas captured by Sarah Carr. See more of her amazing shots on Flickr.) Update:

2039 GMT: Al Jazeera is updating that 11 people have been killed in Suez today. Among 150 injured, 20 are in critical condition.

Update II:

Reuters are reporting that "Egyptian medical sources" estimate there have been 1,030 people wounded today in today's protests.

by Chris Bodenner

A reader asks it:

The Bush administration made it clear they wanted to bring democracy to the Middle East, which was cheered on by the right.  Interesting that those on the right have remained so quiet with respect to what's happening right now.  Is this because it's far too early to judge the outcome, or is it that they are afraid that a Democratic administration may actually receive the credit if things actually work out?

The Dish will soon supply a comprehensive look at the conservative media's reaction to this historic moment in Egypt, but here's an early indication from the Guardian's Richard Adams:

The main US cable news networks had given Egypt minimal coverage so far this week, partly because of the time difference but also because of the president's state of the union address on Tuesday night absorbing so much energy. That has all changed today, with the the extraordinary scenes from Egypt filling America's TV screens – even if the early morning bulletins were more interested in Charlie Sheen's hernia.

The exception has been Fox News, where coverage has been more muted. "You probably don't give a lot of time thinking about Egypt," a Fox News presenter suggested about an hour ago, before explaining that "groups linked to al-Qaida" were in danger of taking over the government in Cairo.

by Chris Bodenner

Scott Lucas captions:

A picture's a thousand words – what about a thousand people in a picture? This image shows riot police using a water gun to disperse protesters in Cairo who are merely praying.

by Patrick Appel

Gil Yaron reports:

"If regime change occurs in Egypt, the Muslim Brotherhood would take the helm, and that would have incalculable consequences for the region," says [Eli Shaked, who was Israel's ambassador to Cairo from 2003 to 2005]. The Israeli government has noted with concern the fact that, even after 30 years of peace, Egypt's army is still equipped and trained mainly with a possible war against Israel in mind.

A cancellation of the peace treaty would open up a new front for Israel against the 11th largest army in the world, which is equipped with modern American weapons. But what Israel fears more than a — somewhat unlikely — armed conflict with Egypt is an alliance between an Islamist regime in Cairo and Hamas, which considers itself an offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood.

Bruce Riedel doesn't think we should fear them:

The Egyptian Brotherhood renounced violence years ago, but its relative moderation has made it the target of extreme vilification by more radical Islamists. Al Qaeda’s leaders, Osama bin Laden and Ayman Zawahiri, started their political lives affiliated with the Brotherhood but both have denounced it for decades as too soft and a cat’s paw of Mubarak and America.

Egypt’s new opposition leader, former International Atomic Energy Agency head Mohamed ElBaradei, has formed a loose alliance with the Brotherhood because he knows it is the only opposition group that can mobilize masses of Egyptians, especially the poor. He says he can work with it to change Egypt. Many scholars of political Islam also judge the Brotherhood is the most reasonable face of Islamic politics in the Arab world today. Skeptics fear ElBaradei will be swept along by more radical forces.

by Chris Bodenner

Scott Lucas updates:

Downtown Cairo is the scene of chaos right now with several buildings on fire – reports say.

1845 GMT: In Cairo, the ruling NDP's headquarters has been almost totally destroyed by the fire. Fire fighters are now trying to put out the flames after protesters destroyed the building. Reports suggest some protesters looted the building before it was set on fire. 

1840 GMT: Rowya Rageh of Al Jazeera – Live from Alexandria – just reported that Army tanks can be found on the streets and are being welcomed by the protesters. 

In the Sinai peninsula, tensions are rising in Sheikh Zuwayid where sporadic clashes continue. Unconfirmed reports suggest that some protesters have armed themselves and are fighting the security forces for control. Electricity to the city and most of the northern Sinai has been cut-off apparently. 

1825 GMT: Sherine Tadros of Al Jazeera reports that flights into Cairo are being cancelled.

by Chris Bodenner

A reader wrote prior to this post:

As a very frequent visitor to the region, I have mixed emotions about the way the unrest in Egypt is developing.  We all support those who are asking for an expansion of freedom and human rights.  However, when I saw how the Muslim Brotherhood was becoming involved, my level of concern dramatically increased.  If there is one group in the Middle East who would push an agenda that is the exact opposite of what the United States would support, it is the Muslim Brotherhood.  So I am torn.  Do I oppose the actions of the Egyptian government in their suppression of human rights or support their efforts to quell any rise in the influence of the Muslim Brotherhood? It is not an easy question to answer.

Another wrote:

My two cents as an Egyptian-American with personal experience in the country rather than any special expertise: those buildings on fire in central Cairo are the symbolic equivalents of the Berlin Wall. The astonishing is fast becoming undeniably real. 

On the Muslim Brotherhood: be wary of ill-informed over-estimations of their influence.  The Brotherhood has been around – as the hidden-in-plain-sight opposition – for as long as the current regime.  They have a quasi-symbiotic relationship, as most young Egyptians recognize.  For this reason, the Brotherhood is unlikely to be or become change that anyone believes in.

by Chris Bodenner

"The Egyptian people will take care of themselves. The Egyptian people will be the ones who will make the change. We are not waiting for help or assistance from the outside world, but what I expect from the outside world is to practice what you preach, is to defend the rights of the Egyptian to their universal values," – Mohamed ElBaradei, currently under house arrest.

(Photo: Egyptian opposition leader Mohamed ElBaradei arrives for Friday prayers at the l-Istiqama Mosque in Giza on January 28, 2011 in Cairo, Egypt. Thousands of police are on the streets of the capital and hundreds of arrests have been made in an attempt to quell anti-government demonstrations. By Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images.)

by Patrick Appel 

Larison doesn't expect it to happen and isn't looking forward to the consequences if it does. His view of that scenario:

If the government is overthrown, it will probably have a good effect on reducing the suffering of the people in Gaza by ending the Egyptian part of the blockade, but it would make it easier for Hamas to operate. If the U.S. helps bring the regime down, the message will be that the U.S. pulled the plug on one of the only two Arab states to make peace with Israel. What are the odds that any other Arab state is going to see the benefits of formally recognizing Israel after that? As for Egypt itself, the fall of the regime could unleash terrible religious violence. The Christians of Iraq have already paid a terrible price as a result of the “liberation” of their country. The Copts and other Christians are at risk of facing similar treatment. 

by Chris Bodenner

Nina Shea shares the unsettling news:

Egyptian scholar Samuel Tadros tells me that observers in Cairo are seeing Islamists out in full force among the protesters today for the first time since the demonstrations began. They poured out of the mosques after Friday prayers and are marching and shouting Islamist slogans.

by Chris Bodenner

EA:

1755 GMT: Al Jazeera report protestors have storm the NDP offices in Al-Fayoum Oasis.

1745 GMT: Al Jazeera correspondent in Suez reports live fire from police station towards Army position. It is unclear who was firing from the station. The car showroom and businesses of a prominent Mubarak supporters are under attack.

Meanwhile, elsewhere:

The army has deployed in Alexandria but atmosphere is calm. Soldiers are talking to protestors. Confirmed that Alexandria governorate and many police stations burned down.

(Photo: Egyptian demonstrators fuel the fire next to burning police vehicles in Cairo on January 28, 2011.By Mohammed Abed/AFP/Getty Images)