Friday evening, Jan. 28, the fourth day of riotous street demonstrations against his rule, president Hosni Mubarak asked the army to take charge of security and imposed a curfew on Cairo, Alexandria and Suez until 0700 hours Saturday. A least two deaths and dozens of people were injured in the rising turbulence of clashes between security forces and the swelling ranks of protesters across the country.
Throughout the day, tens of thousands of anti-government demonstrators clashed with beefed up security forces.
In Cairo, their numbers swelled to tens of thousands when Muslim worshippers poured out of the mosques, many heading for the Nile bridges and fighting to cross over to the government district and Tahrir (Liberation) Square on the other side. Security forces firing rubber bullets and tear gas, using water cannons and charging them with batons, injured hundreds but failed to halt the current. Youths climbed over elite security forces’ armored cars trying to pull the men out of the vehicles. Two police stations were torched. The protesters called for President Hosni Mubarak, his family and his ruling elite – “”the corrupt caste” – to step down. Opposition figure Mohamed ElBaradai was placed under house arrest.
In Suez, a protester died in a clash. In central Alexandria, they set fire to government buildings. Protesters were also on the streets in Suez, Ismailia, Mansoura north of Cairo and northern Sinai. The protest movement Friday was the largest thus far, greatly enlarged by orders to Muslim worshippers to take to the streets from leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood, eight of whom were promptly arrested. The demonstrations appear to be better organized and focused on specific targets, primarily security and police facilities, government buildings and offices of Hosni Mubarak’s ruling party.
WarSclerotic 
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