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[Shade-o]

What's the chances of a nearby nation or other organisation trying to take a bite out of Egypt while it's in chaos?

[Max White]

What's the chances of a nearby nation or other organisation trying to take a bite out of Egypt while it's in chaos?

DEAR GOD NO!!!
As the US of A is currently still freindly with Egypt, it would give them a reason to roll their army in, and then excrement goes fanwad.

[Tilla]

Breaking: the Army has now mobilized their armor and are attempting to push back the Police agents on the overpass from their vantage point. About time they did something.

Edit: some pictures emerging now of ID cards taken from pro-government 'protestors' confirming party membership in the ruling regime. If there was any doubt that this was Mubarak was behind the attacks, it's gone now.

[Max White]

Breaking: the Army has now mobilized their armor and are attempting to push back the Police agents on the overpass from their vantage point. About time they did something.

Dosn't that entitle this to be cival war?

[Tilla]

Breaking: the Army has now mobilized their armor and are attempting to push back the Police agents on the overpass from their vantage point. About time they did something.

Dosn't that entitle this to be cival war?

Not really, the 'pro-government protestors' are operating under the guise of anonymity now and they really can't fight back against the tanks, which have now blocked off the bridge the attacks came from. Looks like at least on that side of the square people can relax a little for a while after all of last night.

[Max White]

Ok!

[Shade-o]

Why would you bring your ID card when you go and anonymously agitate a mob.

[Aqizzar]

The Army's attitude, if not standing orders, seems to be just keeping violence from breaking out or escalating.  They've mostly concerned themselves with laying down smoke and providing cover for the supporter-groups.  They certainly did fire weapons, namely their 50-cals, but supposedly only in warning shots that proved totally ineffective.  Since the warnings didn't work and the protesters are by far the larger number, the Army may have resorted to corralling the supporters instead, so they're at least easier to defend and keep everyone separated.

I mostly wondering if they're actually acting on orders.  When the Army first started moving, it was by single vehicles at a time.  It's possible that individual commanders just decided each to themselves that once gunfire broke out in the crowds, they had to move in and break up the fights.  It could be standing policy now, or just a general agreement.

[Max White]

I mostly wondering if they're actually acting on orders.  When the Army first started moving, it was by single vehicles at a time.  It's possible that individual commanders just decided each to themselves that once gunfire broke out in the crowds, they had to move in and break up the fights.  It could be standing policy now, or just a general agreement.

Soilders are humans too, humans with political veiws. There is a good chance that they were tired of sitting by while protesters were ripping each other apart.

[Tilla]

I mostly wondering if they're actually acting on orders.  When the Army first started moving, it was by single vehicles at a time.  It's possible that individual commanders just decided each to themselves that once gunfire broke out in the crowds, they had to move in and break up the fights.  It could be standing policy now, or just a general agreement.

Soilders are humans too, humans with political veiws. There is a good chance that they were tired of sitting by while protesters were ripping each other apart.

Even more likely because Egypt still has conscriptions, so many soldiers are involuntary..but probably fearful of discipline as well should Mubarak's regime maintain power long enough to do anything about that.

[olemars]

Why would you bring your ID card when you go and anonymously agitate a mob.

In case they're arrested by their own, it's great to be able to identify yourself before you're thrown into the torture pits.

I mostly wondering if they're actually acting on orders.  When the Army first started moving, it was by single vehicles at a time.  It's possible that individual commanders just decided each to themselves that once gunfire broke out in the crowds, they had to move in and break up the fights.  It could be standing policy now, or just a general agreement.

Soilders are humans too, humans with political veiws. There is a good chance that they were tired of sitting by while protesters were ripping each other apart.

Even more likely because Egypt still has conscriptions, so many soldiers are involuntary..but probably fearful of discipline as well should Mubarak's regime maintain power long enough to do anything about that.

Army seems to have no idea what to do with the current situation and the soldiers are pretty frustrated. There's an unconfirmed incident yesterday where a tank commander tried to shoot himself but was stopped by his crew. A number of tanks and vehicles have also been abandoned, unclear if they were ordered to fall back or if the crews have deserted.

[olemars]

ID cards confiscated from attackers by the anti-mubarak people:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/24271114@N08/5411316547/in/set-72157625838724811/

The cards with pyramids on them are regular national ID cards, the greenish ones are NDP party membership cards. Compare logo here.

The weird barcode only cards are supposedly police ID. I guess there are noone with a proficiency in arabic here?

[Max White]

ID cards confiscated from attackers by the anti-mubarak people:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/24271114@N08/5411316547/in/set-72157625838724811/

The cards with pyramids on them are regular national ID cards, the greenish ones are NDP party membership cards. Compare logo here.

The weird barcode only cards are supposedly police ID. I guess there are noone with a proficiency in arabic here?

Well there is the one guy in the comments who is saying

Well for non-egyptians...these IDs are the identity (normal ID for every egyptian) + the membership card of this very person in the NDP of mubarak and his son.
Proving that attackers today (with weapons) were persons from the mubarak party same name, address on both cards. Please Spread this page. Thank you for the solidarity.

But that isn't what you would call a primary source.

[Grakelin]

That's exactly what a primary source is, except to us it is secondary.

[olemars]

Looks like the regime could only afford to hire supporters for one day. The loyalist mooks have been on the run most of the day while the anti-mubarak protesters have consolidated their positions.

More worryingly there's been a heavyhanded crackdown on everything looking slightly like a journalist. Pretty much every foreign journalist has been beaten up or intimidated at some point the last couple of days.

EDIT: Deputy chief and journalist of one of the state run Nile TV channel, Shahira Amin, couldn't take the propaganda the regime was telling them to air anymore, so she quit and went to the Tahrir square to join the protesters