Live Update: Egypt's Friday of victory and continuity
Ahram Online, Friday 18 Feb 2011
Follow Ahram Online's live updates from our correspondents as protesters celebrate the downfall of Mubarak, pay tribute to the revolution's martyrs and call for the rest of their demands to be met


18:05 Hundreds of fireworks light Tahrir sky. People are still pouring to the square. Music is played in many corners and people are dancing. acording to Ahram Online reporters the square and all roads leading to it are flooded with people. Their number is estimated to be between 2 to 3 million.

17: 05 People are still pouring to Tahrir square.

16:00 A small skirmish broke out in Tahrir Square when a group of men tried to remove a banner calling for a civilian government. The banner remains standing but who the men were is unconfirmed. In Talaat harb square, banners call for "all remaining elements of the old regime to be removed" and that "the revolution continues until all its demands are met."

15:43 Khalid Mohammed, whose friend Mohammed Abdel Moneim was killed during the January 25 revolution, tells Ahram Online that demonstrators are planning on making a huge Egyptian flag to dedicate to the martyrs' families. He adds that he is upset as people in Tahrir today are not the revolutionaries, who are still striving for the aims of the revolution.

15:33 Our correspondent in Tahrir Square reports there are chants in support of Bahrain, Libya and Yemen where protesters demanding freedom have met with brutal government crackdowns.

With the number of people in Tahrir estimated at over a million, there have been cases of fainting among the crowds.

15:20 Ahram Online correspondents around the country report smaller demonstrations around Egypt, but each with clear demands.

Following Friday prayers in Arish, around 20,000 demonstrators chanted that unless the State of Emergency is lifted, no police will be allowed inside Sinai.

In Damanhour, 3,000 demonstrators demanded that all symbols of the corrupt regime be removed.

In Marsa Matrouh, 400 demonstrators demanded the end of corruption and higher wages.

The repealing of the emergency law, a new constitution and the trial of members of the old regime were the demands of hundreds of demonstrators in Aswan.

14:50 With Mubarak gone, the main chant in Tahrir today is: "The People want the country cleansed", reports Ahram Online correspondent in the square. One banner says "Every Egyptian citizen has the right to have their human rights, housing and treatment", signalling a shift in demands from the general political to the fundamental basics of a democratic state.

Large framed images of the revolution's martyrs are also held aloft by demonstrators as patriotic songs are blared out through speakers set up in the streets of downtown and from shop windows.

14:36 Al-Jazeera reports that more than a million people are demonstrating in Sidi Gaber, Alexandria.

14:14 Mubarak demonstration in Mostafa Mahmoud Square reported to be a mark of respect for the ousted president with several hundred in attendance.

14:00 In scenes similar to last Friday when Mubarak stepped down, all the streets surrounding Tahrir Square are full of people. The atmosphere, though, seems to have settled since prayers ended.

13:48 An Ahram Online correspondent spoke to Mohammed Youssef, a victim of police violence during the revolution. Youssef, assistant manager in a hotel, lost an eye after being shot three times and his brother was killed. He says he has come to Tahrir today "because I haven't seen justice as no one responsible has been tried and the revolution's demands are yet to be realised, namely equality, justice and freedom for all."

13:45 In Tanta, demonstrators are celebrating the revolution and Mubarak's downfall.

13:40 Meanwhile in Mostafa Mahmoud Square, Mohandiseen, crowds of around a hundred chant "the People want the president to be honoured."

13:35 Journalists march from their syndicate to Tahrir demanding that their profession be cleansed of all symbols of Mubarak's regime.

13:27 Activist Mona Seif reports on Twitter that Cairo University staff are marching to Tahrir from Manyal.

13:18 The number of people in Tahrir today could be the highest so far, certainly this early in the day. The square is packed.

13:10 The martyrs' prayer seems to focus the square's energy and unity. At its end, demonstrators and worshippers are lead in chants of "Neither Hosni nor his regime, neither his party nor its collaborators. The People want the country cleansed."

13:00 Prayers are being held Omar makram mosque and Qasr El-Dubbara church around Tahrir Square. A special prayer will be held for the revolution's martyrs.

12:56 Al-Qaradawi calls on the "brave Egyptian army" to open the Rafah crossing so that Gazans can receive the supplies they need. Turning his attention to arab leaders, he says: "Don't fight history, you can't delay the day when it starts. The Arab world has changed."

12:40 Al-Qaradawi praises the army's statements on democratic transition and asks them to liberate Egypt from Mubarak's cabinet.

12:33 Al-Qaradawi extols Egyptians to persevere with their revolution as it "continues to build a new Egypt" and should be "protect[ed] from hypocrites." He condemns the regime for being the source of sectarianism in Egypt while in "here in Tahrir", Christians and Muslims strove side-by-side for their revolution.

12:19 Yusuf Al-Qaradawi gives the Friday sermon from a podium in Tahrir Square to the hundreds of thousands in attendance. He praises the January 25 revolution, describing it as an "educated" one. Al-Qaradawi adds that it was not only Mubarak Egypt's youths defeated, they also defeated injustice and oppression.

12:12 Prominent Islamic scholar Yusuf Al-Qaradawi is preparing to deliver the Friday prayer sermon in Tahrir Square. According to OnIslam.net, Al-Qaradawi was invited to give the sermon by youth activists grateful for his support of the revolution to oust the ruling regime.

12:05 Meanwhile, a pro-Mubarak rally is reported to be taking place in Mohandiseen attended by around 100 people.

11:52 In Tahrir, demonstrators are chanting "the People demand the trial of the regime." Last night it was announced that former ministers Habib El-Adly, Zuheir Garana and Ahmed El-Maghrabi as well as steel magnate Ahmed Ezz are in jail awaiting trial.

11:00 Thousands of prtotesters already in Tahrir Square ahead of Friday prayers. Today's demonstrations are intended to maintain pressure and awareness for the rest of the popular revolution's key demands, emphasising that Hosni Mubarak's removal from presidential power was only the start and not the end. Here are the six key demands as published on Facebook:

1. The dissolving of Ahmed Shafiq's cabinet and the formation of a technocrats' cabinet.
2. The immediate release of all protesters detained during the revoltuion.
3. The trial of high ranking members of the ministry of interior and the National Democratic Party for crimes committed against the revolutionaries.
4. The dismantling of The Directorate for State Security Investigations.
5. The announcement of a timetable for the repealing of Emergency law.
6. Granting the right of peaceful protest for all Egyptians

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