Egyptian military uses force to break up Tahrir Square protest
Egyptian military uses force to break up Tahrir Square protest
CAIRO – Egypt’s military used force early Saturday to break up a camp of protesters in Tahrir Square, as tensions continued to build between the pro-democracy movement and the military leadership that has run the country since Hosni Mubark’s ouster.
Hundreds of troops, firing heavy volleys of gunfire into the sky and attacking protesters with electric batons, swarmed the center of the square to expel several hundred people who had defied a 2 a.m. curfew [Local time] following Friday’s massive and peaceful protest rally.
Among those who had joined the overnight protesters in the tent camp were a dozen or more uniformed soldiers who had broken ranks to demand that Egypt’s Supreme Military Council move faster to try Mubarak and members of his regime for corruption.
As armored cars and troops swept in shortly after 3 a.m., the protesters, most of whom were young people, initially tried to form a human chain to protect the rebellious soldiers in their camp. But they scattered when the troops began firing their weapons into the air.
Several eyewitnesses said the rebellious soldiers were taken away.
Witnesses said an unknown number of people had been injured by gunfire near a mosque where protesters sought refuge, but their accounts could not be immediately confirmed.
As daylight returned to Tahrir Square, smoke billowed from three burning military vehicles, included armored troop carriers, while soldiers and demonstrators remained in a tense standoff in the streets surrounding Tahrir Square. Broken glass littered the street.
The military issued a statement blaming "outlaws" for rioting and violating the country's 2 a.m. to 5 a.m. curfew, but asserted that no one was harmed or arrested.
“The armed forces stress that they will not tolerate any acts of rioting or any act that harms the interest of the country and the people," the statement said.
Friday’s protest rally, dubbed the Day of Purification, was the largest since Mubarak’s government fell. An estimated 100,000 people mobbed Tahrir Square following midday prayers on the Muslim day of rest to demand that Mubarak be held accountable.
“I think the military council is in favor of Mubarak,” said Loftay Mohamed, 58, a former teacher who attended the demonstrations with her adult daughter. “They’re being too kind, and too patient.”
Others criticized the Supreme Military Council for engaging in some of the same repressive behavior as Mubarak, such as detaining critics of the regime and trying them before military tribunals. During Friday’s protests, some demonstrators called for the removal of Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, 75, who heads the Supreme Military Council.
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تنبيه : لو عجبك أى موضوع ولقيت إنه مفيد لأصحابك اعمل شير على الفيس بوك أو تويتر واعلم بأن كاتم العلم يلعنه الله ويلعنه اللاعنون
