MidnightWatcher – Prophecy in Motion

By ANTHONY SHADID – “CAIRO — The outskirts of Tahrir Square, the iconic landmark of Egypt’s revolution, plunged into chaos on Wednesday, after attempts by the Egyptian military, religious clerics and doctors failed to stanch a fifth day of fighting that has posed the greatest crisis to the country since the fall of President Hosni Mubarak in February.

The fighting in darkened streets, suffused with tear gas and eerily illuminated by the flashing lights of police cars and the floodlights of armored personnel carriers, seemed to stand as a metaphor for a political transition that has careened into deep uncertainty just days before elections that were supposed to anchor the shift from military to civilian rule.

The military that seized power with Mr. Mubarak’s fall rebuffed protesters’ demands to surrender authority this week, and the political elite has seemed paralyzed or defensive over the unrest. The discontent in Tahrir Square has broadened from demands for the generals to cede control and anger over bloodshed into dissatisfaction with a transition that has delivered precious little since the uprising’s heady days in February.

‘This is a revolution of the hungry!’ declared Amr Ali Mohammed, a 23-year-old protester taking a break from the battle with the police. ‘Egyptians have had enough.’…

Clashes escalated through the night, and the Ministry of Health said 500 people were injured in just two hours. Bonfires cast a glow down darkened streets, where protesters retreated from tear gas, stumbling over the debris of their days of melees.

‘The turning point is coming soon,’ said Mostafa Helmy, a 55-year-old engineer.” Read more.

Strict Muslims stake claim on Egypt’s political scene – “On a beach-front wall in Egypt’s second city where courting couples often stroll are scrawled the words: ‘Would you accept this for your sister?’ and ‘Be in fear of God.’ For frequenters of Alexandria’s shores, the authors of the disapproving messages are clear: Salafis, ultra-conservative Islamists who have overcome their distaste for politics to stake a claim on Egypt’s future after Hosni Mubarak’s overthrow. ‘What we want is the complete commitment to Islamic sharia law…'” Read more.

Egypt unrest stirs fears inside Israel – “Days of protest in Egypt, ahead of elections expected to produce big wins for the Muslim Brotherhood, have stirred fears in Israel about bilateral ties and the future of the countries’ peace treaty… On Wednesday, Israel’s civil defence minister Matan Vilnai urged Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, who heads Egypt’s ruling military council, to bring the situation under control. ‘The situation is problematic, sensitive and unclear. Tantawi is trying to avoid chaos and transfer power in the mostly orderly way possible,’ Vilnai told Israeli military radio. ‘We hope that he will succeed… otherwise we will see general chaos and that will be very bad for Egypt.'” Read more.