Protesters back on Egypt streets

Crowds mass in major cities calling for President Mubarak to step down, as death toll from protests crosses 50.


Protesters in Egypt are calling for "regime change, not cabinet change", our correspondent said [GALLO/GETTY]

Source: Al Jazeera
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2011/01/201112974149942894.html

Protesters are returning to the streets of Egypt, following violent overnight demonstrations across the country staged in defiance of a curfew.

Demonstrators gathered in Tahrir Square in the Egyptian capital, Cairo, on Saturday morning, shouting "Go away, go away!", the Reuters news agency said.

Similar crowds were gathering in the cities of Alexandria and Suez, Al Jazeera's correspondents reported.

In Alexandria, our correspondent Rawya Rageh reported that dozens of marchers were calling on Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak to step down.

"They are calling for regime change, not cabinet change," Rageh said.

In Suez, Al Jazeera's Jamal ElShayyal reported that protesters were gathering, and that the military was not confronting them.

ElShayyal quoted a military officer as saying that troops would "not fire a single bullet on Egyptians", regardless of where the orders to do so come from.

The latest protests reflected popular discontent with Mubarak's midnight address, where he announced that he was dismissing his government but remaining in power.

Al Jazeera's Jane Dutton, reporting from Cairo, said the normally bustling city looked more like a warzone early on Saturday morning.

Tanks have been patrolling the streets of the capital since early in the morning.

Rising death toll

Cities across Egypt witnessed unprecedented protests on Friday, with tens of thousands of protesters taking to the streets after noon prayers calling for an end to Mubarak's 30-year rule.

The number of people killed in protests is reported to be in the scores, with at least 23 deaths confirmed in Alexandria, and at least 15 confirmed in Suez, with a further 15 deaths in Cairo.

Al Jazeera's Rageh in Alexandria said that the bodies of 23 protesters had been received at the local morgue, some of them brutally disfigured.

ElShayyal, our correspondent in Suez confirmed 15 bodies were received at the morgue in Suez, while Dan Nolan, our correspondent in Cairo, confirmed that 15 bodies were present at a morgue in Cairo.

More than 1,000 were also wounded in Friday's violent protests, which occurred in Cairo and Suez, in addition to Alexandria.

Dutton, in Cairo, said the number of the people on the streets "increased after president Hosni Mubarak's speech shortly after midnight".

Regarding the situation in the capital on Saturday morning, she said "there is broken glass everywhere ... a lot of the burnt out shells of the police cars have been removed but you are aware that there were hours and hours of skirmishes on the streets of the capital city [last night]".

The ruling National Democratic Party's headquarters in the capital is still ablaze, more than 12 hours after it was set alight by protesters.

The Egyptian army says that it has been able to secure the neighbouring museum of antiquities from the threat of fire and looting, averting the possible loss of thousands of priceless artefacts.

Armoured personnel carriers remain stationed around the British and US embassies, as well as at the state television station.

Some mobile phone networks resumed service in the capital on Saturday, after being shut down by authorities on Friday. Internet services remain cut, and landline usage limited.

Authorities had blocked internet, mobile phone and SMS services in order to disrupt planned demonstrations.

Bloodiest protests

Friday's demonstrations involving tens of thousands of people were the biggest and bloodiest in four consecutive days of protests against Mubarak's government.

Buildings were set alight, and violent clashes continued into the night after a day of unprecedented anger.

Shots were heard near parliament earlier in the day as the headquarters of the ruling party was in flames.

Dozens of protesters climbed on the military vehicles in Suez. They talked to soldiers who attempted to wave them off.

Protesters often quickly dispersed and regrouped.

As clashes intensified, police waded into the crowds with batons and fired volleys of tear gas.

Mohamed ElBaradei, the former head of the United Nations' nuclear watchdog and an opposition leader in Egypt, was briefly detained by police after he prayed at a mosque in the Giza area but he later took part in a march with supporters.

The unrest in Egypt was triggered by the overthrow two weeks ago of Tunisian president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in an uprising that has also inspired anti-government protests in Jordan, Yemen and elsewhere.

The government in Egypt had vowed to crack down on demonstrations and arrest those participating in them.