The all-powerful army said on Monday Egyptians' demands were legitimate and vowed not to fire on them as protesters, who are demanding the ouster of President Hosni Mubarak, prepared a general strike and million-strong marches. In what is seen as a sop, a new cabinet line-up was announced in which widely hated interior minister Habib al-Adly and the previous finance and culture ministers were axed.
But protesters massed in downtown Cairo vowed they would only be satisfied when Mubarak quits, while the key opposition Muslim Brotherhood called for protests to continue until they bring down his creaking regime. Organisers announced an indefinite general strike and said Tuesday would see a "march of a million" in the capital after a week of revolt in which at least 125 people have been killed. Another march was called in the Mediterranean port Alexandria, after national train services were cancelled in an apparent bid to stymie protests.
Those protests will come as the hated police, whose clashes with protesters last week left more than 125 people dead, have returned to the street. But while the posture the police will take in the face of the strike and marches remains unknown, the army said unequivocally it will not stop them.
"To the great people of Egypt, your armed forces, acknowledging the legitimate rights of the people," stress that "they have not and will not use force against the Egyptian people," said a statement published by the state news agency, Mena. Tens of thousands of protesters carpeted Cairo's Tahrir Square, the epicentre of demands for an end to the corruption, deprivation and police oppression indelibly associated with Mubarak's 30-year rule.
"We will stay in the square, until the coward leaves," the crowd chanted. The army has positioned tanks around the area and was checking identity papers but letting protesters in. Civilian popular committee members were also checking papers to make sure no plain-clothes police get in.
"We are looking for police trouble makers. They want to come in and break our unity," said a popular committee member who asked not to be named. Governments, airlines and tour operators worked together on Monday to fly their nationals out of Egypt where protesters pressed their campaign to topple President Hosni Mubarak.
The US State Department said that more than 220 US citizens had been evacuated from Egypt, and that more than 2,400 Americans had requested assistance to leave. It said it hoped to bring 900 US citizens out of Egypt on Monday with flights departing for Athens, Cyprus and Istanbul. Up to 52,000 Americans are registered with the embassy in Cairo.
European airlines, including Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines and Air Berlin, said they were sending larger aircraft than usual to Egypt to meet demand and had agreed additional flights with foreign ministries. Air Partner, which brokers charter aircraft, said it was working round the clock to help companies ranging from oil firms to supermarkets and telecoms groups to get employees out.
Europe demanded "free and fair" elections in Egypt on Monday as it sought to respond to pressure to speak up on the turmoil sweeping Arab nations on its volatile southern flank. With Egypt seen as key to stability across the Middle East, European Union foreign ministers demanded President Hosni Mubarak kick-start an "orderly transition" that stopped short of asking him to step down. A declaration adopted by the EU's 27 ministers called for a step-by-step approach, starting with a broad-based interim government and culminating with a democratic vote.
"The council urges Egyptian authorities to embark on an orderly transition through a broad-based government leading to a genuine process of substantial democratic reforms, with full respect of rule of law, human rights and fundamental freedoms paving the way for fair and free elections," it said.
The ministers also regretted the loss of life and demanded the release of protesters who have been detained over the past days as well as the restoration of communications networks. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday he feared Egypt could end up with a radical Islamic regime as in Iran.
Speaking at a news conference alongside German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Netanyahu said he hoped Israel's three-decade-old peace treaty with Egypt would survive any changes that were taking place in Cairo.
Netanyahu's comments were his sharpest since the start last week of a wave of unrest against Israel's most significant and long-standing ally in the Arab world, Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak. Asked about the situation, he replied: "We are all following with vigilance, with worry and hope that indeed the peace and stability will be preserved," alluding to the treaty Israel signed with Egypt in 1979, its first of two with an Arab nation. "Our real fear is of a situation that could develop ... and which has already developed in several countries including Iran itself, repressive regimes of radical Islam."
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