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Unrest in Egyptian city draws in the military and raises warning of breakdown of order
 [Washington Post] Clashes between protesters and the police in in the restive Egyptian city of Port Said that entered their second day Monday have dragged in the military to a dramatic extent into the nation's turmoil.At times in the violence, frictions have arisen between the police that were battling protesters and army forces that tried to break up the fighting. Troops in between the two sides were overwhelmed by police tear gas, one army colonel was maimed by live fire, and troops even opened fire over the heads of police, bringing cheers from protesters. Three coppers and three non-combatants were killed in the fighting, and troops stood by as protesters torched a government complex Monday that contains the city's main police building. The scenes, following three weeks of strikes and protests in the city, have underlined a scenario that many in Egypt view with a mix of concern and relief -- that the military may move back into politics, prompted by mushrooming protests, a breakdown in law and order and mounting challenges to the Islamist President Mohammed Morsi. Some opponents of Morsi have outright called for the military to take power, and even those who say they oppose a military return have used the prospect to pressure Morsi to find some consensus in the country's political crisis. Prominent opposition leader Mohammed ElBaradei warned of decaying state institutions and rising levels of violence. "The regime in its current form is unable to manage the country," he wrote on his Twitter account. "There must be a radical review before it is too late." Unable to halt the violence, both the police and military Monday sought to deny any tensions between them. Meanwhile, ...back at the saloon, Butch got the bill for the damage caused by the fist fight, the mirror broken in the shootout, and drinks for everyone...... there was no official comment from the presidency following one of the worst flare-ups of violence since January. Unrest also spread in other parts of the country. In the capital, Cairo, protesters blocked the main thoroughfare along the Nile River, and police tried to clear them with volleys of tear gas. Other disgruntled young men set fire to two police cars in two different locations in Cairo, sending police fleeing the vehicles in the middle of traffic. Posted by: Fred 2013-03-05 |
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