Tracking the ongoing demonstrations and government response



1:14 p.m. EST / 9:14 p.m. Cairo Unwilling to let their movement disperse even for a few hours of sleep, many protesters are setting up tents or blankets in Tahrir Square, which has been a focal point of the nationwide protests. Democracy Now's Sharif Kouddous reports from Cairo, " A few tents in the middle of the square. Some people lying down on grass. Many will sleep here. They refuse to leave." It's a sign not just of the absolute dedication of many protesters, which has only strengthened since the demonstrations began on Tuesday, but the nagging anxiety, vaguely apparent in many interviews with the men and women filling Egypt's streets, that the movement could peter out, the momentum could be lost. This photo by Danny Ramadan shows protesters waking up this morning after spending what must have been a very cold night sleeping on the ground in Tahrir Square.





1:04 p.m. EST / 9:04 p.m. Cairo The Egyptian police's desertion of the streets has left much of Egypt susceptible to looting or vandalism. On Saturday, there were isolated reports of plains-clothe police on motorcycles looting stores and some homes. Many Egyptians have taken to setting up neighborhood patrols and checkpoints to provide local security. But what is so far an inspiring example of grassroots civil society could easily spark something worse. Anxious and armed young men can provide security now, but it's easy to foresee an over-eager "checkpoint" team making a mistake or getting carried away with someone they perceive as an enemy. This hasn't happened yet, but it will remain a serious risk until order can be restored, although with the police loyal to Mubarak and the military unable to patrol side streets, it's not clear who would step in. Here's a tweet from The New York Times' Nick Kristof, one of many such reports coming from Cairo suburbs and elsewhere.

My taxi was stopped every 100 yds by private roadblocks, w/ tense young men w/ bats & machetes, looking for looters & cops. Nicholas Kristof

NickKristof

12:46 p.m. EST / 8:46 p.m. Cairo Foreign Policy's Blake Hounshell reports that the video of ElBaradei from Tahrir Square shows Osama al-Ghazali Harb at his side. Harb resigned from Mubarak's National Democratic Party in 2006 and has since edited the Egyptian publication Al-Siyassa Al-Dawliya and become something of an opposition figure. Hounshell writes, "He's a good dude."

12:35 p.m. EST / 8:35 p.m. Cairo Mohamed ElBaradei, holding a bullhorn amid the massive crowd at Tahrir Square, made what appears to have been a very brief but forceful statement. It's not clear if he said more or is still in the square.

They have stolen our freedom. What we have begun cannot be reversed. And as we mentioned before we have a key demand: for the regime to step down and to start a new era.



12:21 p.m. EST / 8:21 p.m. Cairo An Al Jazeera correspondent in Alexandria makes the important point that the majority of protesters' signs are in English, not Arabic. The U.S. leadership, which is very close to Egypt's military and the Mubarak regime, are presumably their target. The U.S. is stuck right square in the middle of this, whether we want to be or not. Update: National Journal's Niraj Chokshi points out that the signs may be in English to maximize their global impact, not to target U.S. government leadership. "Signs in English means most of the world will understand."