Ahmed Moor spent one tumultuous afternoon with protesters in central Cairo, where he found that the 'Arabs are alive.'
Ahmed Moor
Al-Jazeera
"The skies in Cairo were gray and a stultifying mist enveloped Tahrir Square when I got there on Tuesday. It was about 10:00 in the morning, and the protesters I had come to join were not around. But there were riot police on every corner, blocking off all of the side streets.
The notorious mukhabarat – the secret police – were around too. It is easy to identify them; they are invariably thuggish looking and they do a good job of making themselves look conspicuous. I guess they are not so secret, but they do not have to be in this police state.....
The back and forth between Tahrir Square and the building housing the parliament, or Shoura Council, happened several more times with neither side gathering enough momentum to break the impasse. Many of the protesters took up chants – Silmiya! Silmiya! – calling on others to avoid violence and stone-throwing.
At around 6:30 pm, there were many thousands of people in the square and several thousand riot guards blocking them off on three sides. There was no more violence, but the crowds remained energetic. The men whose throats had grown hoarse found others to take up freedom's call.
And Hosni Mubarak quaked. And he continues to quake.
When I left the protest at 7:00 pm to file this report, there were still thousands of people in the square. I was tired, but not more tired than the people who have waited 30 years for the opportunity to breathe. They know how precious today was; they will not let this opportunity slip by.
I saw today that the Arabs are alive. And the Arabs are hungry."
Ahmed Moor
Al-Jazeera
"The skies in Cairo were gray and a stultifying mist enveloped Tahrir Square when I got there on Tuesday. It was about 10:00 in the morning, and the protesters I had come to join were not around. But there were riot police on every corner, blocking off all of the side streets.
The notorious mukhabarat – the secret police – were around too. It is easy to identify them; they are invariably thuggish looking and they do a good job of making themselves look conspicuous. I guess they are not so secret, but they do not have to be in this police state.....
The back and forth between Tahrir Square and the building housing the parliament, or Shoura Council, happened several more times with neither side gathering enough momentum to break the impasse. Many of the protesters took up chants – Silmiya! Silmiya! – calling on others to avoid violence and stone-throwing.
At around 6:30 pm, there were many thousands of people in the square and several thousand riot guards blocking them off on three sides. There was no more violence, but the crowds remained energetic. The men whose throats had grown hoarse found others to take up freedom's call.
And Hosni Mubarak quaked. And he continues to quake.
When I left the protest at 7:00 pm to file this report, there were still thousands of people in the square. I was tired, but not more tired than the people who have waited 30 years for the opportunity to breathe. They know how precious today was; they will not let this opportunity slip by.
I saw today that the Arabs are alive. And the Arabs are hungry."
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