Sunday, January 30, 2011

Egypt protests: Hosni Mubarak in frantic bid to cling on to power

President appoints intelligence chief to vice-president post as streets ring out to cry of 'Mubarak, your plane is ready'

Peter Beaumont and Jack Shenker in Cairo and Paul Harris in New York
The Observer, Sunday 30 January 2011

"Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak was desperately trying to cling to power last night as troops opened fire in an attempt to keep tens of thousands of protesters from storming the interior ministry and state-run television and radio stations.

The president's attempt to mollify the demonstrators by sacking his government 24 hours earlier had failed and the leader of the largest Arab nation was facing an ignoble and violent end to his 30 years in power. The streets rang out with anti-government slogans and the cry "Mubarak, your plane is ready"......"

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