http://www.telegraph.co.uk
The full horror of Egypt's political convulsions has emerged, as relatives gathered at morgues filled with bodies and doctors described their heroic efforts to save the wounded.
As President Hosni Mubarak installed his head of intelligence as the first vice-president of his 30-year rule in a desperate effort to cling to power, it became clear that the death toll from the past two days of violent disturbances was even higher than officials claimed.
A tally of credible figures from around Egypt collated by The Sunday Telegraph showed that at least 89 people had died, compared with the 62 admitted by officials on Saturday. A further 2,500 were said to have been injured.
Among the dead were 10 policemen — some had been attacked by protesters. The civilian dead and injured included many shot with live rounds: doctors and protesters displayed bullets they had picked up from the streets after police — and in some cases soldiers — opened fire.
The use of live ammunition against his people, with witnesses claiming that deadly rounds had been fired by units of the elite presidential guard, throws into further doubt continued American support for Mr Mubarak’s regime.
President Barack Obama telephoned his counterpart late on Friday night to urge the 82-year-old leader to take concrete steps toward reform. “Violence will not address the grievances of the Egyptian people, and suppressing ideas never succeeds in making them go away,” he said after the 30-minute conversation.David Cameron, the Prime Minister, last night spoke to President Mubarak and expressed his “grave concern” at the violence on the streets. A Downing Street spokesman said: “He emphasised that violent repression of peaceful protest was wrong and counterproductive.
“The Prime Minister urged the president to take bold steps to accelerate political reform and build democratic legitimacy, which should be reflected by an inclusive government with the credibility to carry this agenda forward.”
William Hague, the Foreign Secretary, urged Mr Mubarak to make “real and visible” reforms, adding: “We call on the government to exercise restraint and on the Egyptian people to pursue their legitimate grievances peacefully.”
Yesterday, protesters again defied tanks, bullets and a curfew to gather in Cairo and demand the removal of their president. There were scenes of high emotion at morgues around the country as wailing families demanded the bodies of those killed on Friday.
There were clashes in towns and cities across the country, as the wave of protests — now entering its sixth day and inspired by Tunisia’s Jasmine Revolution — showed little sign of abating.
Political prisoners went on the rampage in two prisons and at least 1,000 protesters throwing Molotov cocktails tried to ransack the Interior Ministry before police opened fire with live rounds, killing at least three people. There were similar protests in Alexandria, and in Suez hundreds joined in demonstrations. Thousands of foreign tourists spent the day at Cairo’s international airport as they tried to escape.
British Airways chartered a plane to bring home Britons who wanted to abandon their holidays early, although a spokesman said there were no plans for a mass evacuation.
A British Midland flight to Cairo, with 64 passengers on board, turned back midway because of the unrest and other airlines altered their schedules to avoid arriving after the 4pm curfew.
At least 25,000 Britons were holidaying at the heavily-guarded resort of Sharm-el-Sheikh and were said to be in no danger. Security forces maintained a ring round the resort, with police officers manning checkpoints along all major roads to protect the tourists and the vital source of foreign revenue which they represent. The Foreign Office warned against all but essential travel to the main cities of Egypt, including tourist sites such as Luxor, but did not include the Red Sea resort.
Armoured personnel carriers and tanks moved into the historic Cairo suburb of Giza to protect the pyramids.
President Mubarak announced early yesterday morning that he was to fire his entire cabinet and replace all his ministers in an attempt to assuage popular anger. It was the clearest indication yet that the man once considered “president for life” now knows he is locked in a battle for survival.
Within hours, Ahmed Shafiq, the country’s aviation minister and, like Mr Mubarak, a former head of the Egyptian Air Force, was appointed prime minister. But his decision to install his close confidant, Mr Suleiman, 72, as vice-president, provoked the anger of Egyptians campaigning for the end of Mr Mubarak’s autocratic, police state.
“He is just like Mubarak, there is no change,” said a protester outside the Interior Ministry.
Mohamed ElBaradei, the Egyptian former head of the UN’s nuclear energy inspection agency, who has emerged as a voice of the country’s opposition flew into Cairo on Friday. He said appointing a new vice-president and prime minister would not be enough to end the revolt.
“The system of Hosni Mubarak has failed to achieve the political, economic and social demands of the Egyptian people and we want to build a new Egypt founded on freedom, democracy and social justice,” he told Al Jazeera, the news channel. “The main demand is that President Mubarak announces clearly that he will resign, or that he will not run again.”
In a separate interview with a French television station, Mr ElBaradei said: “The protests will continue with even more intensity until the Mubarak regime falls.”
The elevation of Mr Suleiman — who has made a career of stamping down on Islamist opposition while forging closer relations with Israel — offers a possible route to the exit door for Mr Mubarak when presidential elections are held later this year.
The intelligence chief has long been tipped as the likeliest successor from within the regime, if Mr Mubarak shelved plans to groom Gamal, his US-educated son, for the job. Gordon Thomas, a British intelligence analyst, said the urbane spymaster, with clipped English vowels and a neat moustache, was well-regarded by his counterparts in MI6, the CIA and Mossad.
“He has been advising Mubarak to be very careful with the military and urged him to promise to meet the protesters, so he has a good sense of the changes that need to be made,” he said. “The question is whether Mubarak will allow him to do that.”
Last night there were unconfirmed rumours that younger members of the family — including Gamal — were fleeing to London.
The upheavals, and Mr Mubarak’s response to them, leave Western powers in an awkward situation as they support protesters’ calls for democratic reforms, but without the bringing down of their most useful Arab allies.
On Saturday, doctors gave vivid accounts of the savagery that erupted for a short while in Cairo.
Dr Mona Mina, who treated protesters at a makeshift aid station close to Tahrir Square throughout Friday night, the main scene of demonstrations in Cairo, said patients claimed they had been shot by members of the Egyptian Presidential Guard. “This was not trying to frighten people,” she said. “When you shoot into the head and chest you are killing people.”
There are fears that a political vacuum in Egypt could allow the rise of the Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt’s powerful Islamist opposition, which is officially banned.
The organisation stayed out of the protests until Thursday. Yesterday it called for Mr Mubarak to leave the country after more than 350 of its members were arrested.
“Go Mubarak, have mercy on this people and leave so as not to increase the destruction of Egypt,” said Yusuf al-Qaradawi, one of the movement’s spiritual leaders, who lives in Qatar.
Protesters remained on the streets after darkness fell as reports circulated that some police officers had taken refuge inside mosques to avoid the protesters’ wrath.
In Iran, Mir Hossein Mousavi, the main opposition leader, said the demonstrations in Egypt and Tunisia were similar to those that shook Tehran in 2009. “The Middle East is on the threshold of great events these days that can affect the fate of the region and the world.”
No comments:
Post a Comment