“I’m not 100 percent sure they want to leave power,” Hussein said. “They are responsible for the deaths and violence. They know what happened to Mubarak when he lost power. They could be arrested for their crimes.” BY JEFFREY FLEISHMAN
BY JEFFREY FLEISHMAN | LOS ANGELES TIMES
CAIRO — The death toll from violence between protesters and Egyptian security forces climbed to 12 on Saturday, but clashes eased as weary demonstrators and riot police squared off on battered streets leading to the capital’s Interior Ministry.
Protests jolted several other cities, including Alexandria and Suez, where medical officials told Egyptian media seven demonstrators had died since renewed violence erupted nationwide Thursday. Five people were killed in Cairo as police fired tear gas and birdshot at stone-throwing protesters in skirmishes around the Interior Ministry.
The latest bloodshed followed a riot at a soccer match Wednesday that killed 74 people in the city of Port Said. Local hooligans attacked visiting fans of a Cairo team with knives and other weapons. Many Egyptians have accused the police and ruling military council of complicity in not preventing the melee.
Cairo’s Tahrir Square was calm for much of Saturday as protesters and police appeared to have reached a truce after three days of clashes that left more than 2,000 injured. The crowd was smaller than the day before; young men slept near ash fires leading to the Interior Ministry, and a man walked with a silver pail of incense to cut the lingering tang of tear gas.
At nightfall, however, protesters on the front lines rushed barricades but were driven back by fresh volleys of tear gas. The scene was similar to the battles of a day before and showed that protesters have the passion but not the muscle to force the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces from power.
“We need to go back to Jan. 25 of last year when we all came to the square united to overthrow Hosni Mubarak,” said Magdy Hussein, who stood on a corner as young men marched toward the Interior Ministry. “We need to be together again. One hand. But we are divided. Too many people are saying let’s wait and see, but there is no time to wait.”
The military has said it will step aside when a constitution is written and a new president is elected in June. The army has wide support, but the soccer incident and other bloodshed, including scores of deaths during protests in November and December, have led to intense criticism over its failure to maintain stability during a transition to democracy.
Many activists and other Egyptians believe the military, which has been running the country since Mubarak was deposed one year ago, does not want to relinquish its authority.
“I’m not 100 percent sure they want to leave power,” Hussein said. “They are responsible for the deaths and violence. They know what happened to Mubarak when he lost power. They could be arrested for their crimes.”
