CAIRO – Troops took control of Tahrir Square, the fulcrum of protests that swept Hosni Mubarak from power, to allow traffic through central Cairo on Sunday as military rulers struggled to get life in Egypt back to normal.
There were heated rows in Tahrir Square on whether to keep up protests or comply with army orders to help put Egypt back on its feet. “The people want the square cleared”, one group chanted. “We will not leave, we will not leave,” replied another.
The Arab world’s most populous country was taking its first tentative steps towards democracy and protest organisers were forming a Council of Trustees to defend the revolution and urge swift reform from a military intent on restoring law and order. Police officers, emboldened by the 18 days of protests that led to the overthrow of Mubarak’s 30-year rule, gathered to demand higher pay and a security guard said warning shots were fired in the air. No one was hurt.
Earlier, troops, some wielding sticks, pushed protesters aside to reopen Tahrir square to traffic. A cabinet meeting, due later on Sunday, could provide some answers to a protest movement hungry for change after a revolution that shocked and enthralled the Middle East, sending a warning to autocratic rulers across the region. For the first time, the portrait of Mubarak, believed to be holed up in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, will not gaze over cabinet proceedings as Egyptians quietly removed images of of the 82-year-old former leader.
“REVOLUTION CONTINUING” : Protest leaders want the immediate release of political prisoners, the lifting of a state of emergency used by Mubarak to crush opposition and dissent, the closure of military courts, fair elections and a swift hand over of power to civilians. Despite Mubarak’s resignation, some protesters have said they plan to stay in the square to ensure the military council keeps its promises on transition. They plan a big demonstration next Friday to celebrate the revolution and honour those killed.
“The revolution is continuing. Its demands have not been met yet,” Mahmoud Nassar, an activist of the “Youth of the Jan. 25 revolution”, told a news conference.
