28 January 2011 Last updated at 11:25Egypt unrest: Police clash with protesters in Cairo
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The protests could widen after Friday prayers
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Police have clashed with thousands of protesters demanding the resignation of President Hosni Mubarak in the Egyptian capital, Cairo, after Friday prayers.
The police fired tear gas and used water cannons to disperse the crowds, who responded by throwing stones.
People also took to the streets in the coastal cities of Suez and Alexandria.
The government has said it is open to dialogue, but also warned of "decisive measures". There has been disruption to internet and mobile phone services.
There were reports of fresh clashes overnight, as well as opposition figures being arrested.
Continue reading the main storyAnalysis
Jeremy Bowen BBC Middle East editor, Cairo
This is going to be a test for the demonstrators - and the authorities. The government is expected to deploy thousands of police and plainclothes security men. If the day passes relatively quietly, they will claim a victory.
But if big demonstrations materialise - in Cairo and elsewhere in Egypt - and if the security forces struggle to control them, then the protest movement will gain a lot of momentum.
Arabs across the region are looking closely at what is happening here - as are big foreign powers and Israel. Egypt is the traditional leader of the Arab Middle East - and despite an unpopular peace with Israel, is still highly influential.
Protesters in other Arab countries will feel bolder if enough Egyptians decide to defy the power of the state.
There was also an apparent crackdown on the banned Islamist opposition movement, the Muslim Brotherhood, after it said it would back the Friday protests.
On Thursday, Egyptian opposition figure and Nobel Peace Prize winner Mohamed ElBaradei returned to Cairo, promising to join the demonstrators.
At least seven people have died and up to 1,000 have been arrested since the protests began. They follow an uprising in Tunisia, which saw President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali toppled.
'Fear barrier'
Friday's rallies in Egypt were expected to be the biggest so far, with people urged via internet sites to join after attending prayers.
The organisers called on people to come out in force, stressing that the religion of protesters was not relevant.
However, most internet and mobile-phone data connections appeared to be cut off from early on Friday. Service providers gave no reasons for the disruption.
On its website, the Muslim Brotherhood accused the government of engineering the disruption "to prevent the voices of the Egyptian people from reaching the world".
The Associated Press reported that the elite counter-terrorism force had been deployed to key locations in Cairo, including Tahrir Square, where earlier protests were held.
Continue reading the main storyMUSLIM BROTHERHOOD
- Egypt's oldest and largest Islamist organisation
- Founded by Hassan al-Banna in 1928
- Has influenced Islamist movements worldwide
- Mixes political activism with charity work
- Banned from open political activity
- Rejects use of violence and supports democratic principles
- Wants to see the country governed according to Islamic law
- Slogan: "Islam is the Solution"
But Egyptian film-maker Ahmed Rasheed, who was planning to take part in Friday's demonstrations, said people no longer feared arrest.
"We have broken this fear barrier," he told the BBC. "People are taking to the streets, young people, all walks of life, educated, non-educated, higher social classes, lower social classes."
Egypt's interior ministry has warned it will take "decisive measures" against the protesters.
A lawyer for the Muslim Brotherhood meanwhile told the BBC that tens of its members had been arrested.
A security source told the Reuters news agency: "We have orders for security sweeps of the Brotherhood."
Despite an official ban, the Muslim Brotherhood remains Egypt's largest and most organised opposition movement.
The BBC understands that security chiefs have told President Mubarak that they can handle any trouble which might happen after Friday prayers.
Mr Mubarak, 82, has been in office since 1981.
The Egyptian government tolerates little dissent and opposition demonstrations are routinely outlawed.
On Thursday, Mr Mubarak's National Democratic Party (NDP) said it was ready for dialogue but did not offer any concessions.
Safwat al-Sherif, the party's secretary-general, said: "The NDP is ready for a dialogue with the public, youth and legal parties. But democracy has its rules and process. The minority does not force its will on the majority."
'No option'Continue reading the main story“Start Quote
End QuoteBarack Obama, on this occasion, may wish not so much for change we can believe in but change he can live with”
Mark Mardell BBC North America editorReturning to Cairo on Thursday, Mr ElBaradei said: "I wish we did not have to go out on the streets to press the regime to act."
He called on the government to "listen quickly, not use violence and understand that change has to come. There's no other option."
Thursday saw protests in Cairo and other areas. In the Sinai region, a Bedouin man was shot dead by security forces.
In Suez, police fired rubber-coated bullets and used tear gas and water cannon, witnesses said. A fire station was set alight by demonstrators.
The unrest in Suez continued late into the night. One protester in the city told Reuters: "This is a revolution. Everyday we're coming back here."
The US government, which counts Egypt as one of its most important allies in the Arab world, has so far been cautious in expressing support for either side.
President Barack Obama described the protests as the result of "pent-up frustrations", saying he had frequently pressed Mr Mubarak to enact reforms.
He urged both sides not to resort to violence.
Middle East social indicators
Country pop. (m) median age jobless (%) below poverty line (%) internet users (m) Algeria
34.5
27.1
9.9
23
4.7
Egypt
80.5
24
9.6
20
20
Jordan
6.4
21.8
13.4
14.2
1.6
Lebanon
4.09
29.4
na
28
1
Libya
6.4
24.2
30
33
0.35
Morocco
31.6
26.5
9.8
15
13.2
Saudi Arabia
25.7
24.9
10.8
na
9.6
Syria
22.1
21.5
8.3
11.9
4.4
Tunisia
10.5
29.7
14
3.8
3.5
W Bank & Gaza
2.5
20.9
16.5
46
1.3
Yemen
23.4
17.89
35
45.2
2.2
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Friday, 28 January 2011
BBC News - Egypt unrest: Police clash with protesters in Cairo
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