A chaotic scene continued in downtown Cairo on Thursday as angry protesters vowed reprisal against police officers, thugs, and pro-Mubarak supporters while others pleaded for restraint.
The density of checkpoints in Downtown Cairo at 10AM on Thursday had clearly increased from the day before when violence broke out between pro-democracy and pro-Mubarak supporters in Tahrir square.
Outside the Naguib Mahfouz metro station, a man was seen striking a passerby with a wooden stick, calling him “a son of a bitch” and “traitor.” A middle-aged Egyptian man nearby, also holding a club as he helped man the checkpoint nearby, called for moderation.
“Mohamed, not like this!” he called out.
Another man intervened, grabbing the arms of the man swinging the wooden stick. “Easy, calm down!” he cautioned.
A couple of bystanders were observed near Bab al-Louk in downtown Cairo asking an elderly man if there were any Mubarak supporters in the area. “No,” he replied. “At this point, they are all [anti-Mubarak] people. Mubarak thugs and police get beaten.”
Tuesday night outside a checkpoint in Dokki, another man, Mohamed, 24, explained the phenomenon of anti-Mubarak people beating those suspected of being police or paid thugs. “After being subject to abuse at the hands of police for all those years, some people, declaring themselves the new officers, want to do to other people what policemen had previously done to them,” he said.
“Usually though, others intervene to restrain those people and urge restraint,” Mohamed continued.
Since 27 January when police forces withdrew from the city, residents across the nation organized themselves into neighborhood patrols to guard against ongoing looting from thugs who attempted to infiltrate their communities.
Yesterday's violence only escalated the chaos, adding to that caused by looters and the general weariness of pro-Mubarak supporters against protests that have crippled the nation. Many of the Mubarak's “thugs,” as anti-Mubarak protesters called them, are allegedly being paid by the ruling National Democratic Party to attack the pro-democracy protesters and make it appear as if Mubarak garners genuine support from large sections of Egypt's population.
Near Tahrir Square, the words “traitor” and “treason” filled the air as disputes broke out between passersby and those manning checkpoints.
Pedestrians entering Tahrir from the direction of Talaat Harb Square were subjected to searches and ID checks up to a dozen times every few feet as anti-Mubarak protesters attempted to prevent Mubarak supporters from entering the area.
Makeshift clinics covered the area as the reported death toll rose to five people with more than 1,500 injured. Most of the dead resulted from sporadic gunfire used against the pro-democracy demonstrators at about 4PM on Wednesday. A fifth of the people inside the square were walking around with bandages covering their heads and faces.
After four days of peaceful protests since riot police retreated, yesterday brought a newly intensified round of violence as Mubarak supporters attacked anti-Mubarak demonstrators in the square, using sticks and rocks to disperse the crowds. Some pro-Mubarak supporters mounted on horses and camels charged the crowds.
At night, clear battle lines formed as anti-Mubarak protesters hid behind steel barriers, launching rocks and Molotov cocktails to keep Mubarak supporters at bay. What had formerly been a paved street in front of the Egyptian Museum, turned into a mound of rubble as protesters tore up cement in an effort to reinforce the front lines with rocks for ammunition.
Near the front lines, anti-Mubarak protesters attempted to raise morale by using steal slabs as makeshift war drums. Dark smoke rose from burning vehicles in the gap between the two warring groups.
One protester took shelter with a group of others behind the Abd al-Moneim Riad statue less than 100 meters from the Egyptian Museum on one side and the 6 October Bridge on the other. His arms stuck out from behind the statue as he waved an Egyptian flag defiantly, amid flying stones and Molotov cocktails, in front of the pro-Mubarak crowd.
