Been so busy avoiding SOTU speculation that we entirely missed this. As if American news organizations would especially
bother to cover it.
"We have never seen anything like this before – it is the first day of the Egyptian revolution," said Karim Rizk, one of those who joined multiple rallies in the capital. Apparently taken by surprise at the size of protests, police initially stood back and allowed demonstrators to occupy public squares and march through the streets, an unprecedented move in a country where political gatherings are strictly outlawed and demonstrations are normally quickly shut down by security forces. "We have taken back our streets today from the regime and they won't recover from the blow," claimed Rizk.
Today's protests were called by a coalition of online activists, who had declared 25 January a "day of revolt" against the ruling elite and encouraged Egyptians to follow in the footsteps of Tunisia, where mass demonstrations forced President Ben Ali to flee earlier this month. As evening fell thousands of protesters from separate demonstrations converged on Tahrir Square, Cairo's central plaza, and begun an occupation that continued into the night. Demonstrators waved Egyptian and Tunisian flags, hauled down a billboard for the ruling NDP party and chanted "depart Mubarak" at the 82-year-old leader, who will face presidential elections later this year.
And of course:
• US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has said Mubarak's government is stable despite the demonstrations. Mubarak is an important US partner in the Middle East.
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