Cairo square the focus for protesters

Tens of thousands of protesters packed Cairo’s Tahrir Square yesterday in the biggest demonstration in months against the ruling military. The protest was aimed at stepping up pressure on the generals to hand over power to civilians and bar ex-regime members from running in presidential elections.

Islamists and liberals turned out together for the protest to show the widespread anger at the military over the chaos ahead of the first presidential elections since the fall of Hosni Mubarak. The confusion has raised suspicions the generals ruling are manipulating the process to preserve their power.

Liberals and youth groups called for all factions to agree on an anti-military “revolution” candidate in the vote, but the powerful Muslim Brotherhood and other Islamists – who have their own ambitions in the race – refused to sign on.