Egypt why are they protesting

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Your tax deductible gift can help stop human rights violations and save lives around the world. More Reading. Ten years ago, protests swept across Arab nations that changed the course of history. More from Gallery. In Pictures: Hindus bathe in frothy, polluted Indian river.

Most Read. Belarusian airline stops flying Middle East citizens from Turkey. During my life, I had known only Mubarak and his security apparatus. The shouts that I was hearing for democracy and freedom must have seemed to many like an unachievable dream.

And yet, the momentum only grew. By Friday, declared a "day of rage", protests had spread across the country. In total, I was to spend 18 days covering the popular uprising in Cairo and the coastal city of Alexandria. I knew I was witnessing some historic moment. Behind the ups and downs - of dangerous clashes and defiance - for the first time in many people's lives a sense of change was in the air.

Each day brought incredible scenes: desperate young men staying put day and night - even daring to sleep on the metal tracks of army tanks - and others distributing free blankets and food to demonstrators, neatly repainting the kerbs and collecting rubbish.

In my interviews with protesters, it was clear they were determined, ready to sacrifice their lives for change. When, finally, on 11 February, Mubarak stepped down, there was an outburst of joy and euphoria. At first, power was handed to a military council, but then seeds of division were sown between former comrades in Tahrir Square: liberals and Islamists. But in , after just one year in power, he was ousted in popular protests supported by the armed forces.

The ugly stand-off that resulted with his supporters camping out for six weeks in Rabaa al-Adawiya Square was to end in a "massacre". Covering the bloody scenes was the lowest point in my career.

It is believed more than people were killed in raids by the security services that described by Human Rights Watch as "crimes against humanity". Later, in , Egypt elected a new president - another military strongman - President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi. While many believed that the revolutionary spirit of Tahrir Square would always remain, President Sisi's government has since made strenuous efforts to dampen it.

Protesting has become more dangerous than ever: a way to get yourself shot or killed. Ten years on from the day when many believed the revolution had achieved its goals, these have still not been met.