Violent protests as Egyptians demand Mubarak steps down

Police responded with blasts from water cannon and set upon crowds with batons and tear gas to clear demonstrators shouting out "Down with Mubarak" and demanding an end to Egypt's poverty, corruption, unemployment and police abuses.

The demonstration, the largest Egypt has seen for years, began peacefully, with police showing unusual restraint in what appeared to be a calculated strategy by the government to avoid further sullying the image of a security apparatus widely seen as little more than corrupt thugs in uniforms.

With discontent growing over economic woes, and the toppling of Tunisia's president resonating, Egypt's government - which normally responds with swift retribution to any dissent - needed to tread carefully.

But as crowds filled downtown Cairo's Tahrir Square, waving Egyptian and Tunisian flags and adopting the same protest chants that rang out in the streets of Tunis, security personnel changed tactics and the protest turned violent.

The sight of officers beating demonstrators had particular resonance because Tuesday was also a national holiday honouring the much-feared police.

In Egypt, discontent with life in the autocratic police state has simmered under the surface for years. But the example of Tunisia appeared to be enough to push many young Egyptians into the streets for the first time.

"This is the first time I am protesting, but we have been a cowardly nation. We have to finally say no," said Ismail Syed, 24, a hotel worker who struggles to live on a salary of $50 a month.

Demonstrators attacked a water cannon lorry, ordering the driver out of the vehicle. Some hurled rocks and dragged metal barricades. Officers beat protesters with batons as they tried to break cordons to join the main group of demonstrators.

Protesters emerged stumbling from white clouds of tear gas, coughing and covering their faces with scarves. Some had blood streaming down their faces. One man fainted. Police dragged some away and beat a journalist, smashing her glasses and seizing her camera.

Crowds also marched to the headquarters of Mr Mubarak's National Democratic Party, shouting, "Here are the thieves".

Egypt's government remained silent, issuing no public comment on the demonstrations.

At one point, the protesters seemed to gain the upper hand, forcing riot police to flee under a barrage of rocks.One demonstrator climbed into a fire engine and drove it away.

Eid Attallah, 50, who works as a driver, said: "I want my three-year-old child to grow up with dignity and to find a job just like the president." He said he had heard about the planned protests from friends but didn't expect them to be so big.

"We are fed up; this is just enough," said Sayid Abdelfatah, 38, a civil servant who marched with an Egyptian flag.

"Tunisia's revolution inspired me but I really never thought we would find such people ready to do the same here."

During a lull in the clashes, lines of protesters bowed in unison to perform the sunset prayer as police stood aside. Several thousand remained in the streets after dark.

To the north, in the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria, thousands of protesters also marched in what was dubbed a "Day of Rage" against Mr Mubarak and lack of political freedoms under his rule.

Like the Tunisian protests, the calls for the rallies in Egypt went out on Facebook and Twitter, with 90,000 saying they would attend.

In another parallel with Tunisia, the protests drew energy in large part from the death of one person: a young Egyptian man named Khaled Said, whose family and witnesses say was beaten to death by a pair of policemen in Alexandria last year.

His case has become a rallying point for Egypt's opposition. Two policemen are on trial in connection with his death.

Tunisia's protests were sparked by the death of a vegetable vendor who set himself in fire in protest over corruption.

Mothers carrying babies also marched and chanted, "Revolution until victory!" while young waved signs reading "OUT!" that were inspired by the Tunisian protestations of "DEGAGE!" Men sprayed graffiti reading "Down with Hosni Mubarak".

"We want to see change just like in Tunisia," said Lamia Rayan, 24, one of the protesters.

Some passers-by dismissed the protests, saying a few thousand of Cairo's 18 million people coming out on the streets was not enough to force change.

"This is all just a waste of time," said Ali Mustafa Ibrahim, who works at a cigarette stand. "These are a bunch of kids playing cat and mouse … It's just going to create more problems and more traffic in the city."

Nearly half of Egypt's 80 million people live under or just above the UN's poverty line of $2 a day. Poor quality education, health care and high unemployment have left many Egyptians deprived of basic needs.