By John Galt
July 23, 2011
While the lack of focus by the American mainstream media on the week long protests in Cairo were well underway, the fury of the original protesters and the new found disdain for the military has spread north to Alexandria, except this time the military did not let the protests expand beyond about 1,000 before firing shots in the air and beating marchers. From Reuters last night:
Egypt police disperse Alexandria protesters-witness
23 Jul 2011 00:04
* Alexandria protest blocks road, military police fire shots
* Cairo protesters march towards military council HQ
* Army denies using force against protesters
By Abdel Rahman Youssef
ALEXANDRIA, Egypt, July 22 (Reuters) – Egyptian military police fired shots in the air and beat demonstrators blocking a main road in Alexandria on Friday, witnesses said, a move which could further sour relations between the army and civilians.
It was a rare incidence of violence in two weeks of largely peaceful protests in the Mediterranean city of Alexandria, Cairo and the Suez Canal city of Suez following a court’s decision to free on bail 10 policemen accused of killing protesters during the uprising that overthrew President Hosni Mubarak in February.
The violence in Alexandria and an incident in Suez angered hundreds of protesters camping in Cairo’s Tahrir Square, witnesses said.
They said a crowd of more than 1,000 began marching towards the headquarters of the ruling military council, chanting: “Down with the Field Marshal” — a reference to the council head, Field Marshal Mohammed Hussein Tantawi. Witnesses said military police fired in the air to stop them approaching the building.
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It is now becoming very obvious to even the most casual of observers that the Islamist summer of rage is well under way and spreading from Algeria to Afghanistan as the frustration with those nations and military leaders aligning themselves with the West is infuriating not just the masses but the religious leadership. These small stories will end with a much larger one before this summer is over as America’s former allies shift allegiance from us and to the more radical aspects of Islamic political influence.
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