EGYPT REVOLT - Egypt activists to hold Tunisia-inspired 'action day'

Anti-government activists in Egypt are preparing for a rare day of protest, inspired by the recent political upheaval in Tunisia.

Organisers have called for a "day of revolt against torture, poverty, corruption and unemployment".

But the government has warned they face arrest and is calling its supporters out in a counter-demonstration.

"Our protest on the 25th is the beginning of the end," Reuters quoted the organisers as saying.

"It is the end of silence, acquiescence and submission to what is happening in our country. It will be the start of a new page in Egypt's history - one of activism and demanding our rights."

Egypt has many of same social and political problems that brought about the unrest in Tunisia - rising food prices, high unemployment and anger at official corruption.

Continue reading - BBC - Egypt activists to hold Tunisia-inspired 'action day'

UPDATE on 25th Jan - Egyptian Police Confront Protesters

Thousands of protesters clashed with the police in the Egyptian capital on Tuesday as antigovernment activists energized by events in Tunisia sought to transform Police Day, a national holiday, into a “day of revolution.”

The demonstrators quickly swelled in number as they snaked through winding streets and converged on the central Tahrir Square, where they met security forces in full riot gear and a water cannon truck. Clashes began after protesters jumped on the truck and tried to take control of it.

Thousands occupied the square, hurling rocks and beating back several attempts by security forces to disperse them with tear gas. Some in the security force stooped to pick up the rocks and hurl them back at the protesters. A few protesters were seen dismantling a fire truck.

The marchers included young people documenting the clashes with cellphone cameras and middle-aged men carrying flags of the Wafd party, one of Egypt’s opposition groups. Women, some in headscarves and some bareheaded, also marched.

The protesters echoed the deep-seated frustrations of an enduring, repressive government that drove Tunisians to revolt: rampant corruption, injustice, high unemployment and the simple lack of dignity accorded them by the state. At least six young Egyptians have set themselves on fire in recent weeks, in an imitation of the self-immolation that set off the Tunisian unrest.

The antigovernment demonstration appeared to be among the largest to hit Cairo since 1977, when riots forced the government to back down from an increase in the price of bread.

“Freedom, freedom, freedom,” they chanted. “Where are the Egyptian people?”

Protests have also erupted in other Arab nations including Algeria, Morocco and Yemen, which face similar problems of high unemployment and rising living costs. The demonstrations today were organized on Facebook, with about 90,000 people signing up to protests, and some of those attending the Cairo rally waved Tunisian flags. There were smaller protests in Alexandria.

Continue reading - NY Times - Egyptian Police Confront Protesters

Protest in Egypt - Jan 25, 2011


Thousands of anti-government protesters gather in Cairo, Egypt


Egypt police fire tear gas as rioting erupts in Cairo


Large Protests Erupt In Egypt


Crowd chanting "Revolution, Revolution until victory"


Crowd in downtown Cairo chanting "The fall of the regime is what the people want"


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