Jan. 30: Mohamed Elbaradei, a leading opposition figure, has joined thousands of protesters in Cairo’s Tahrir Square in continued demonstrations demanding an end to President Hosni Mubarak’s 30-year rule. On Sunday night, he told the crowd that “what we have begun cannot go back” referring to days of anti-government protests.
The show of continued defiance by the people came on a day when air force fighter planes flew low over Cairo along with helicopters and extra troop lorries appeared in the central square. Main roads in Cairo have been blocked by military tanks and armoured personnel carriers, and large numbers of army personnel have been seen in other cities as well.
As the protests continue, security is said to be deteriorating and reports have emerged of several prisons across the country being attacked and of fresh protests being staged in cities like Alexandria and Suez.
Thirty-four leaders from the Muslim Brotherhood were freed from the Wadi Natroun jail after guards abandoned their posts.
The protesters in Cairo , joined by hundreds of judges, had collected again in Tahrir Square on Sunday afternoon to demand the resignation of Hosni Mubarak who met with his top military commanders, including Omar Suleiman, the head of the army, and the armed forces chief of staff, amid unconfirmed reports that he planned to announce a new cabinet. Suleiman met with the interior and defense ministers to discuss a plan to restore security.
In Washington, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made a strong pitch for an “orderly transition” towards a democratic government in Egypt, but did not directly call for long-term American ally Hosni Mubarak to step down.
Ms Clinton said a move towards a participatory government has to be initiated but cautioned that the Egyptian establishment should make sure there is no political vacuum in the process of transition.