Legal Commentary

ElBaradei Emerges As Leading Opposition Figure in Egypt Protests

By Big Tent Democrat

NYTimes:

CAIRO — The Egyptian military reinforced parts of the capital on Sunday with tanks, jets and helicopters as tens of thousands of protesters flooded central Cairo for the sixth day, defying yet again government orders of a nationwide curfew. The uprising, which began as a spontaneous grass-roots movement, appeared to coalesce, at least for the moment, as the largest opposition group, the Muslim Brotherhood, threw its support behind a leading opposition figure, the Nobel laureate Mohamed ElBaradei, to negotiate on behalf of the protesters.

Mr. ElBaradei arrived in Liberation Square, the center of the protests, shortly after nightfall and addressed the crowd through a bullhorn. “We are beginning a new era in Egypt,” he said. “What we have begun cannot be reversed. “We have a key demand: for Mubarak to step down and to start a new era.”

Full post as published by TalkLeft on January 30, 2011 (boomark / email).