Large marches of protesters chanting antimilitary slogans streamed from mosques around Cairo to join tens of thousands massed in central Tahrir Square in a new uprising anniversary rally on Jan 27, with many demanding an early transfer of power by the ruling military and the trial of generals for the killing of protesters. Tensions erupted when one march of hundreds of protesters headed toward the Defence Ministry building and was met by dozens of supporters of the military who chanted, “the army and people are one hand.” The pro-military group formed a human chain across an intersection, but the protesters pushed through them, shouting “down with military rule.”
Egyptian youths camped out on Jan 26 in Cairo’s Tahrir Square and vowed to stay put until the army hands power over to civilians, a day after a mass demonstration marked a year since an uprising which brought down Hosni Mubarak. Tens of thousands of Egyptians poured into the square and onto streets of other cities for the Jan. 25 anniversary of the day the revolt began. Although good-natured, the demonstration exposed rifts in the Arab world’s most populous nation.