BBC News - Egypt unrest: Day seven as it happened (2025)

0115That concludes our live coverage of Egypt's seventh day of anti-government protests but you can keep up to date with

regular news updates throughout the night.

Thank you for following developments on the BBC.

0059Hugh Miles says that the significance of al-Jazeera is "that it helped people overcome their fear of regimes, because up until a few weeks ago it was received wisdom in the Arab world that unarmed people never confront the regime and that, if you do, you are certain to be arrested or to be killed and your movement will be stopped in its tracks." In their coverage of the events in Tunisia, "al-Jazeera and other media helped to demolish a lot of entrenched dogma and this helped break down a psychological barrier for Egyptians".

0058Hugh Miles, an expert on Arab media, tells the BBC that television networks such as al-Jazeera and social media have been absolutely critical in informing Arabs around the world about what is going on.

0054The BBC's Ben Thompson in Dubai reports on the economic impact of the protests in Egypt. Away from Cairo, he says, most Egyptians are going about their daily lives. But hundreds of millions of dollars have been taken out of Egypt's banking and financial system. Investors are also nervous about the implications for trade - about 8% of all international trade in goods goes through the Suez Canal. The passage can cut 12 days from the shipping time between the Middle East and the US. Egypt's tourism industry is also nervous. Tourism accounts for about 6% of the nation's economy. Many tourist attractions in the Nile Valley have been shuttered for now, and it seems likely that holiday-makers will think twice before heading to Egypt. That said, many investors are used to the unpredictability of doing business in the Middle East.

0047In a blog,

Steven Cook of the Council for Foreign Relations

writes: "The succession is already underway. The appointment of Soleiman as vice president only underscores that the military establishment is not giving up their informal link to the presidency and the regime. If they can manage to salvage their difficult situation, the officers now in control will reconstitute the Egyptian leadership under Soleiman and Ahmed Shafiq, the new prime minister who is an air force officer (like Mubarak). The important thing now is to manage Mubarak's exit, which must be as graceful as possible at this point.For honour's sake, the brass won't have it any other way."

0042Marwan Muasher says: "My message to my former colleagues is reform or reap the consequences." He also warns that "if it can happen in Tunisia, I don't think any other Arab country is immune" and that the final result "depends on whether Arab governments can learn the right lesson".

0038Marwan Muasher, the former deputy prime minister of Jordan, tells the BBC: "This is not about the economy, this is about governance." He says that the one common thread that Arab countries share is sub-par governances and that "increasing salaries or lowering prices" will not solve the problem. Rather, Arab countries will need to "widen decision-making processes" and establish "strong parliaments".

0028Middle East expert Michele Dunn, who participated in a White House discussion on Egypt on Monday, says on BBC World News America that what Tunisia showed was that it perhaps wasn't as hard to overthrow these regimes as one may have thought.

0026The BBC's Andrew North says that the Egypt crisis is the greatest foreign policy challenge the Obama administration has faced yet. He wonders if Barack Obama will be the last in a long line of US presidents to have hosted Hosni Mubarak at the White House.

0024Martyn Indyk, the former US ambassador to Israel, tells the BBC that "the best case scenario is that Omar Suleiman steps in and tells Hosni Mubarak that, for the good of the country, it is time for him to go".

0020

Sharif Kouddous

tweets: "It's 2am. Cairo is empty and quiet. In a few hours, the streets will be filled. #Egypt"

0017David Larsen, an American Fulbright Scholar who is preparing to leave Cairo, tells the BBC that despite the apparent chaos, he has been treated very kindly over the past few days. "As an American, I have been humbled by the generosity and nobility of the Egyptian people."

0014Amr Gharbeia, a protester in Tahrir Square tells the BBC's Matt Frei that the numbers of protesters there right now are "overwhelming. It is very loud." He said he believed that it would be disastrous if the military used force during Tuesday's protests. "The people here don't think that what the army promises the people should be the focus of the discussion. The people are the focus of this game." He believes the Egyptian people have the power and they can "outplay" anyone else.

0011Ghada Bassali, living in Burke, Virginia, spoke to the BBC about her family in Egypt: "The food is scarce, there's no gas pumps working except for one which is controlled by the army. There's no cash because banks are not working and ATMs have been vandalized. It's been very tough".

0007The Washington Post reports that US congressional leaders have heeded Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's call for American officials to speak with one voice with regard to Egypt. Only one member of Congress has called for President Hosni Mubarak to step down.

0003

Habib Haddad

tweets: "Egypt's ePulse stopped from beating, but its people's pulse is beating harder than ever #Egypt #Jan25"

2359 US Vice-President Joe Biden spoke to Bahrain'sKing Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa on Monday. According to the White House, Mr Biden "reiterated our strong focus on opposing violence and calling for restraint; supporting universal rights … and supporting an orderly transition to a government that is responsive to the aspirations of the Egyptian people".

2354 Adel Bassali, a Christian Egyptian living in Burke, Virginia, told the BBC: "I don't think it's a good time for Mubarak to go now. His term should be done in September. Maybe he has to hold earlier elections and appoint new government members but I don't want him to leave it at this point when it is very chaotic."

2348

Arazby

tweets: "Tonight, I pray for you Egypt. I pray for you, and I will continue, till freedom finds its way towards you. #Jan25 #Egypt"

2345

Sharif Kouddous

tweets: "They are too late in trying to cut off communications. The word is out. Everyone is coming to Tahrir 2moro from across Cairo & #Egypt."

2343The BBC's Rajini Vaidyanathan has been speaking to Egyptian Americans in Virginia. Many told her they were disappointed with the way President Obama has handled things. "Barack Obama started all this with his speech in Cairo, calling for democracy and freedom," a local named Mohammed said. But in his eyes, the US president hasn't followed through.

2335The BBC's Katty Kay notes: "For all the talk of end of American empire, no-one wants to know what the Chinese are saying to Mubarak."

2328Cuba's former leader Fidel Castro has criticised the Obama administration's handling of the unrest in Egypt. "Obama doesn't have any way to manage the can of worms that he has opened," Mr Castro wrote for Cuba's state media. Cuba's officials have yet to comment on the protests.

2325

@jaketapper, ABC News White House Correspondent

tweets: "Frank Wisner, the former ambassador to Egypt whom POTUS dispatched to Cairo, is said to have close relations w/ Mubarak and inner circle."

2320Egypt's Information Ministry has told CNN it plans to shut down mobile phone networks again on Tuesday, ahead of the planned "million man march".

2317The BBC's Middle East editor Jeremy Bowen has called the Egyptian military's statement that it will not use force against the protesters a "decisive intervention". He says it "removes a lot of uncertainty from the minds of protesters. People were really scared for a while, but now they don't have to be." He also notes that the Egyptian army has no tradition or history of shooting at its own people.

2310Google has set up a service where Egyptians can send Twitter messages by leaving a voicemail on an international number. Google says: "The service will instantly tweet the message using the hashtag #egypt. No internet connection is required. People can listen to the messages by dialling the same phone numbers... We hope that this will go some way to helping people in Egypt stay connected at this very difficult time. Our thoughts are with everyone there."

2306The BBC's Kim Ghattas has spoken to an American official who complains that no matter what Washington does, it is being criticised: "This is the irony here, on the one hand we're being accused of dominating everything and dictating everything, on the other hand we're being accused of not dictating everything and dominating everything. These are choices to be made by the Egyptian people."

2301With Vice-President Omar Suleiman now seemingly the favourite to succeed Hosni Mubarak as president, the New York Times has pointed out that the former US ambassador to Egypt, Francis Ricciardone,

wrote in a leaked diplomatic cable in 2007

that he was seen by both the ruling apparatus and general public as a "reliable figure unlikely to harbour ambitions for another multi-decade presidency".

2249Mahmoud Shokry, a retired Egyptian diplomat and a friend of Vice-President Omar Suleiman, tells the New York Times that the "army is not a puppet in the hands of anybody". "The army does not want to make any confrontation with the youth," he says, adding that the generals would "ask Mr Mubarak to leave" before they would accept orders they think could lead to civil war or risk their credibility with the public.

2245BBC Middle East editor Jeremy Bowen says: "The announcement by the army that it will not resort to using force is absolutely critical because it takes away a huge measure of uncertainty from the mind of any potential demonstrator. It also takes a tool away from an increasingly desperate President Hosni Mubarak. This means that when people go out on the streets on Tuesday, they know that the army will not hurt them. This will give the demonstrators a great deal of confidence."

2243

Lara El Gibaly

tweets: "Egyptian satire of the day: Sign on burnt police car covered in mounds of trash reads "New NDP headquarters" :) #Egypt #Jan25 ."

2238Al-Jazeera is reporting that a relatively small pro-Mubarak demonstration is taking place outside the information ministry in central Cairo. This is believed the first time that supporters of the government have taken to the streets of the capital in the past week.

2229The BBC's world affairs editor, John Simpson, in Cairo says: "The army holds Egypt's future in its hands, as it has for almost 60 years - ever since Gamal Abdul Nasser led a military coup against the monarchy in 1952. In the 1973 war against Israel, the army crossed the Suez Canal and captured territory held by Israel - an achievement that Egypt is still immensely proud of. Today, the army is the 10th biggest in the world. President Mubarak has made its commanders rich and powerful, but now they seem anxious to shift away from him."

2220Noor Group "started disappearing from the internet" at about 2046 GMT, according to US-based firm Renesys. Egypt's four main internet service providers cut off access to their customers on Thursday.

2214Egypt's last working internet service provider, Noor Group, is now down, according to a US web monitoring organisation.

2206The US national football team cancels its exhibition match against Egypt in Cairo on 9 February because of the unrest.

2205

Gamaleid

tweets: "Egypt uprising, people chant 'not religious nor military but civilian.'"

2200Stephen Grand, a Middle East expert at the Brookings Institution, tells the Reuters news agency that US officials "seem to have in mind a managed transition that avoids the creation of a vacuum that extremist elements might exploit". "This could mean the creation of a caretaker government that oversees the rewriting of the constitution and the holding of free and fair elections," he says.

2155Yasser El-Shimy, a lecturer at the Catholic University of America and a former Egyptian diplomat, tells the BBC World Service: "The regime is waiting to see how many people actually turn up to the protests tomorrow, and if millions appear as the organisers are hoping, something will have to give. I think the Mubarak regime relies for domestic support on two institutions - the military and the police force. The police have been unable to protect the regime, and the military has been unwilling. Right now, they have no domestic pillars of support and they are in a very tough predicament."

2151The BBC's Lyse Doucet in Cairo says: "The statement from the army is extraordinary. People will see some similarities to what happened in Tunisia, when the army's refusal to fire on protesters led to the ousting of the president. The language will appeal to the thousands of people in Tahrir Square, where there is a very friendly atmosphere between protesters and the soldiers deployed. They are trying to defuse any tension building up before the mass demonstrations planned on Tuesday."

2146The BBC's Jon Leyne in Cairo says that in the wake of the army's statement that the demands of the protesters were legitimate and that it would not use force against them, "the logical step now is for Omar Suleiman to take over power". Mr Mubarak named the intelligence chief as vice-president - his first since taking power in 1981 - on Saturday.

2139Vice-President Omar Suleiman is quoted by state television as saying that the new Egyptian government's priority will be combating unemployment, poverty and corruption, according to the Reuters news agency. It will also strike a balance between wages and prices, he promises.

2133Hebba Moraiv of Human Rights Watch in Cairo tells the BBC World Service that its death toll from the recent unrest is 174. "We based this on visits to two hospitals in Alexandria, two in Cairo and one in Suez, which means the actual death toll could be higher than that." She says staff at one private hospital had been asked to provide information on wounded protesters, and that at least 16 people had been arrested while receiving treatment.

2120The BBC's Paul Adams in Washington has more about Frank Wisner's mission: "The US state department is tight-lipped, saying only that he is already in Cairo and 'has the ability to talk to Egyptian leaders'. It seems the former ambassador's job will be to drive home the need for wide ranging political reforms and what American officials describe as an 'orderly transition'. There's a feeling among Western diplomats here that President Mubarak has yet to draw the necessary conclusions from events unfolding throughout his country. It may fall to Mr Wisner to say that unless the Egyptian leader acts fast, there may be no alternative but to leave."

2114Ali Elhamamy in the UK writes: "Arrived back into UK from Egypt last night, having spent the previous week with family in Suez. Just wanted to add that I've been highly critical of Egypt and the mentality of Egyptians over the years, but never have I been prouder than when I saw the people on the streets defending themselves and their neighbours from the thieves and gangs taking advantage of the current policing situation."

2112The BBC's Lyse Doucet in Cairo says: "There was initially a report on one independent TV channel that there would be dialogue between a senior Egyptian government figure and one of the protest leaders at 1100 GMT on Tuesday, and that it would be broadcast live on a big screen in Tahrir Square. Such dialogue, in full public view, would be unprecedented. Vice-President Suleiman's statement would appear to confirm that this may happen."

2059After independents allied to the banned opposition Islamist group, the Muslim Brotherhood, won 20% of the seats in the 2005 parliamentary elections, Egypt's constitution was rewritten to stipulate that "political activity or political parties shall not be based on any religious background or foundation"; independent candidates were banned from running for president; and anti-terrorism legislation was introduced that gave the security forces sweeping powers to detain suspects and restrict public gatherings. Last year, the Muslim Brotherhood won no seats in parliament, while the ruling National Democratic Party won 80%.

2053Mr Suleiman says the president will outline the new government's polices within the next few days. "It will include clear and definite policies to carry out his pledges within an expedited timeframe in a way that would restore the trust in Egyptian economy, compensate for the losses and damages it incurred, and promptly deal with the priorities of tackling unemployment, fighting poverty and corruption and achieving the required balance between wages and prices," he adds.

2034More on Vice-President Suleiman's address on state TV: He says new elections will be held in some districts where there was evidence of irregularities in last year's parliamentary election. "As for political and democratic reforms, the president stressed that the government must faithfully, promptly and without any delays carry out the decisions of the court of appeals with regards to the electoral appeals. This would ensure the [necessary] constitutional and legislative measures be taken to rerun the elections, within the next few weeks, in the districts where the appeals have been submitted," he says.

2029The BBC's Adam Brookes in Washington says Frank Wisner was US ambassador to Egypt in the early 1990s, and officials describe him as a man trusted by Mr Mubarak.

2025The US says it is despatching a representative to Cairo to help it understand the situation on the ground. Officials say Frank Wisner is a private citizen, not an envoy.

2018Vice-President Omar Suleiman tells state TV that Mr Mubarak has asked him to open "immediate contacts with all political factions in order to start a dialogue around all issues at hand with regards to constitutional and legislative reforms".

2014Egyptian actor Omar Sharif, who lives in Cairo, has been commenting on the turmoil: "The protesters want one thing now: they want the president to step down. This is the first thing. After that, they do not know what they want. I myself don't know."

2005More on foreigners fleeing: Some 1,200 American citizens have been evacuated on nine flights on Monday, and at least six more flights are planned for Tuesday, the state department's PJ Crowley says.

1954British expat Rachel Ellis tells the BBC why she is leaving Cairo: "The word is, if you can get out, then get out. We're leaving because everything feels very uncertain. Tanks have been positioned around the edge of the compound where we live. With two young children, we're not going to take the risk of staying."

1947

Gigi Ibrahim

tweets: "The plan is to get Mubarak out, there is no organisation, the people are the ones driving the revolution"

1941Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said he fears radical Islamists could seize power in Egypt, Israel's main ally in the Arab world. "Our real fear is of a situation that could develop... and which has already developed in several countries including Iran itself - repressive regimes of radical Islam," he told a news conference in Jerusalem. "We are all following with vigilance, with worry and hope that indeed peace and stability will be preserved."

1934The head of the League of Arab States, Amr Moussa, says there must be a peaceful transition "from one era to another" in Egypt. "It is incumbent upon politicians or people working in politics to help that process," he tells the AFP news agency.

1920Mr Gibbs also says the US embassy in Cairo has neither been in contact with pro-democracy leader Mohamed ElBaradei or the opposition Islamist group, the Muslim Brotherhood, this week.

1916Asked about whether President Hosni Mubarak should stand in September's presidential election, Mr Gibbs says the United States "does not determine who is on the ballot", but is concerned that the elections be free and fair.

1908Referring to the new Egyptian cabinet, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs says: "This is not about appointments. This is about actions. That is what people around the world need to see from the Egyptian government." He urges meaningful negotiations among a broad cross-section of groups in Egypt, and says the US is "thus far pleased by the restraint that has taken place" in recent days. "This has to be something that is carried out through non-violence," he adds.

1905

Ahmed

tweets: "Egyptian actors @amrwaked, Khalid Abdalla , Karim Kassem, @kalnaga , Basma , Yosra El Lozy , are in Tahrir Square #jan25"

1903White House spokesman Robert Gibbs tells a news conference: "It is not up to us to determine when the grievances of the Egyptian people have been met by the Egyptian government. There are legitimate concerns held by the Egyptian people for a long time. Those must be addressed in a substantive way. We are not picking between those on the streets and those in the government."

1859

Firas Al-Atraqchi

tweets: "The Egyptian military is choosing its words very carefully #jan25 #cairo"

1854The BBC's Jon Leyne in Cairo says: "The announcement by the Egyptian army that it will not use force against their own people, and that it considers the demands of the protesters "legitimate", could be a devastating blow to President Mubarak. To regain control of the streets, he would need the use - or at least the threat - of force from the army. It comes after a call by the opposition for a million-strong demonstration on Tuesday in central Cairo. It now seems increasingly likely that the 30-year rule of Mr Mubarak is drawing to a close."

1843As Hossam el-Hamalawy points out, residents of Cairo have been forced to group together to protect their families and properties. Tamer Adly Erain told the BBC: "Since Friday, the situation in the city has deteriorated rapidly. Looters have overrun our neighbourhood. I am carrying around a metal rod and kitchen knife for protection... I've been forced to patrol our neighbourhood to keep it safe because the army won't."

1839Hossam el-Hamalawy, an Egyptian blogger and journalist from Cairo who writes the popular blog Arabawy,

tells the Washington Post

: "I see [President Mubarak] stepping down pretty soon or else he will be taken into custody of the protesters and will be put on trial. I do not worry about power vacuum because the people are already taking initiatives on the ground to fill any security or political vacuums as we saw in the case of the popular committee that are running security now in the Egyptian neighbourhoods, following the evacuation of the police. Regarding [Nobel Peace Prize winner Mohamed] ElBaradei, I do not want to see him as an interim leader because he will diffuse the revolution, not take it forward."

1835The US ambassador to Egypt, Margaret Scobey, recently warned in a diplomatic cable leaked by Wikileaks that President Hosni Mubarak appeared to have no firm succession plans. "He seems to be trusting to God and the ubiquitous military and civilian security services to ensure an orderly transition," she wrote.

1829The BBC's Kevin Connolly in Cairo says: "Military checkpoints on key roads around Cairo are beginning to do more to restrict the flow of traffic, and the authorities have closed the railway system to make it harder for the opposition to make good on their threat to mark the eighth day of protest in Egypt by bringing a million people onto the streets. The contest between presidential power and passionate protest remains unresolved, with the Egyptian army - whose sympathies may in the end be decisive - still more watchful than forceful."

1818The army's statement appears to be a reaction to a call by the opposition for a million people to take to Cairo's streets on Tuesday. Israa Abdul Fattah, a founder of the 6 April youth movement, earlier told the Associated Press: "We don't want life to go back to normal until Mubarak leaves."

1813While asserting that it "will not use force against the people", the Egyptian army has also warned against "the carrying out of any act that destabilises the security of the country", according to state television.

1804Diana in the UK writes: "My other half is Egyptian and I am British, so he is over there staying with his family at this time. It has been very stressful for me trying to contact him as the internet is down and we can't Skype. The mobile network connection for him has also been intermittent. I am due to go out there and visit him in a few weeks, but he suggested that maybe I shouldn't as the situation is very bad. I am obviously very worried about him being involved in the protests."

1803Istvan Hegedus, chairman of the Hungarian Europe Society and a former youth leader, tells the BBC World Service that the situation in Egypt reminds him of the year that the Berlin Wall fell. "It brings back memories of 1989 because there were many people on the streets fighting for freedom and against the oppression of the old regime," he says. He also says there are differences: "First of all there was no violence in 1989. Secondly there were fewer people on the streets - there weren't huge demonstrations like there are in Egypt."

1757More than 2,400 Americans have contacted US officials seeking government-chartered evacuation flights from Egypt, the US state department says. About 900 are expected to have left the country by the end of Monday. Another 1,000 will fly out on Tuesday.

1755The Egyptian army says it "has not and will not resort to using force against the people" and is "conscious of the legitimate demands by honourable citizens".

1752The BBC's Lyse Doucet in Cairo says: "Egyptian poet Abdul Rahman Yusuf has been addressing the crowds in Tahrir Square, calling on President Mubarak to go. It's been his message for years."

1749Amnesty International condemns the Egyptian government's crackdown on freedom of expression after six al-Jazeera journalists were briefly detained in Cairo and their Cairo bureau was shut down. "The authorities are clearly trying to intimidate the media and to prevent the truth coming out about abuses by its security forces, as they struggle to maintain their grip on power in the face of unprecedented protests and demands for fundamental change," says Malcolm Smart, Amnesty's director for the Middle East and North Africa.

1744James Reynolds, the BBC's Tehran correspondent, says the Iranian government has decided that what it is seeing in Egypt is a repeat of 1979, of the Islamic revolution. "Iran's parliamentary speaker has said it is time to overcome puppet autocratic regimes by relying on Islamic teachings. That's also been the message from clerics and the Iranian establishment. They believe that an Islamic moment is coming to Egypt, and to other countries," he adds.

1735More from the Muslim Brotherhood: a statement says the Islamist group "declares its total rejection of the new cabinet, which does not respond to the will of the people" and calls on "the people to continue with their activities and join the mass marches all around the country until this regime leaves, with its president, its party, its ministers and its parliament".

1725The

price of Brent crude oil has hit $100

a barrel for the first time since October 2008 on concerns about the political unrest in Egypt. Brent rose 65 cents to $100.07 a barrel in afternoon trading. Oil prices had risen earlier in the day on fears that protests could lead to the closure of the Suez Canal and disrupt oil supplies. They fell back temporarily when the head of producers' group, Opec, said he did not expect Suez to be affected.

1722

mand0z

tweets: "Most supermarkets [in Cairo] are working only until curfew time. Same goes for pharmacies."

1719Liselore Molema, a 22-year-old student from the Netherlands who has been waiting more than 80 hours at Cairo's airport for a flight out tells the BBC World Service that people are getting increasingly frustrated. "They said to us that the planes to South Africa would be leaving, but then they said it wouldn't. Everybody is very angry - they are screaming, hitting each other. I can see some weapons. It's terrible. We don't know what to do. We are standing here waiting, but there is no help for us. We are very scared and desperate," she adds.

1715Concerns that the unrest in Egypt could spread have

knocked European stock markets

, with shares in travel firms taking a hit. In London, shares in Thomas Cook fell 1.9%. Meanwhile, rating agency Moody's has cut its debt rating for Egypt, and changed its outlook from stable to negative. It downgraded the country's debt rating one notch from Ba1 to Ba2.

1714Egypt's opposition Islamist movement, the Muslim Brotherhood, has rejected the new government sworn in earlier by President Hosni Mubarak, and called for further protests until it falls, according to the AFP news agency.

1709The BBC's Lyse Doucet in Cairo says: "I met a protestor in Tahrir Square who said it was the first time he had come here. He had decided that '30 years was enough'".

1701Egypt's new Finance Minister, Samir Radwan, tells the Reuters news agency that he has a "national mission at a very critical time". "So far there have been no instructions given to me from the president, there are no decisions regarding economic policies, it is still too early to do or say anything," he adds. Mr Radwan, who worked for 28 years at the UN's International Labour Organisation, faces a difficult task as the economy has all but ground to a halt amid the unrest. Egypt's banks and stock exchange will be closed for a third day on Tuesday and when they do reopen, they may come under pressure as investors seek to transfer funds out of the country.

1654Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he fears that what happened in Iran could happen in Egypt, according to the Reuters news agency. In 1979, the US-supported Shah of Iran was toppled in a popular revolt led by Ayatollah Khomeini, who went on to found an Islamic republic.

1648The French secretary of state in charge of youth and community life, Jeannette Bougrab, has been forced to make clear that her call for Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak to go because he was "worn out" did not reflect the government's official stance. She did not apologise for the remark.

1644On the final day of the African Union summit in Ethiopia, member states have called on Egyptians to ensure their protests are peaceful. Malawi's President, Bingu wa Mutharika, said the uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia were two more crises for the AU to contend with. "I guess at some point we will have to put our heads together to find out how we can assist the process, to find out what the cause is and how we can assist in the reconciliation," he told reporters.

1640In a blog,

Biz Stone of Twitter

calls on the Egyptian government to "restore the tweets to the country, to allow the freedom of information to flow". "Our goal is to instantly connect people everywhere to what is most meaningful to them. For this to happen, freedom of expression is essential. Some Tweets may facilitate positive change in a repressed country, some make us laugh, some make us think, some downright anger a vast majority of users. We don't always agree with the things people choose to tweet, but we keep the information flowing irrespective of any view we may have about the content," he explains.

1630

mand0z

tweets: "Around 50% of protesters have a high level of political awareness, and the other 50% are learning from those 50% during sit-ins"

1623Professor David Kelly of Sydney's University of Technology tells the BBC it has been widely reported that searches for the word "Egypt" in Chinese have been blocked on microblogs (such as Twitter). "You can search for the English word 'Egypt' and apparently find discussion [of the unrest]. But the average user would probably be put off by not finding it in Chinese. The government feels threatened by the parallels it has seen in China in connection with 'colour revolutions'.

"The authorities in Beijing are in my mind quite insecure, and signal this constantly… even very minor expressions of discontent can be treated as threats to the stability of the regime."

1616

Sharif Kouddous in Cairo

tweets: "A large group of men women and children are sitting in a line forming the word 'leave' ."

1615 Six Palestinian prisoners who broke out of prison in Egypt during the chaos there have reached the Gaza Strip, a prisoners' family liaison group says, according to AFP - some using the illicit tunnels going under the border between Egypt and the Gaza Strip.

1606 Twenty-seven EU foreign ministers adopt a declaration urging Egypt to embark on an "orderly transition" leading to "free and fair elections", reports AFP.

1605Protesters in Tahrir Square are unimpressed by the new cabinet sworn in earlier on Monday. Talaat al-Sadat, a relative of President Hosni Mubarak's predecessor, told the BBC: "Mr Mubarak has brought in new people to work for him, but this will not succeed. I am calling upon all the Egyptians, in all the provinces, to go onto the streets."

1602

dancefromiraq:

tweets: "Hot air balloon now flying over Tahrir sq. that says "Mubarak, Get out."

1559Egyptian state television is showing live pictures of the demonstration in Tahrir Square. Throughout much of the day, the two state-run channels, al-Misriya and Nile News, have broadcast no footage of the protests or security forces on the streets. They instead focused on "ordinary Egyptians organising the protection of people and property" from looters, according to BBC Monitoring. They also showed several interviews with people criticising the pan-Arab TV channel, al-Jazeera.

1552The BBC's Lyse Doucet in Cairo says: "Tahrir Square is almost packed as the sun starts to set. The atmosphere is relaxed as the protesters mingle. Megaphones are sending loud calls for change. The soldiers are standing by."

1541Israeli officials tell the Associated Press that they have agreed to allow the Egyptian army to move two additional battalions, or about 800 troops, into the Sinai peninsula for the first time since the 1979 peace agreement between the two countries. The soldiers are being sent to the area around the Red Sea resort of Sharm al-Sheikh, where there are thousands of foreign tourists, the officials add.

1534

Tim Marshall, Sky News correspondent

tweets: "#Egypt Even as dusk approaches, 3 hrs after curfew a few 100 more people have arrived. People have lost their fear."

1532Alec Ross, a senior adviser to US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton,

tweets that pressure from Washington led to the release of the six al-Jazeera journalists detained earlier:

" We have been told that following a request from The State Department, @StateDept, Al Jazeera's journalists have been released. #Jan25 #Egypt"

1525Asked about the situation in Egypt during talks with Poland's prime minister, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso says: "We are for a peaceful solution. I believe dialogue is the only way for Egypt to achieve changes that address at the same time the challenge of democracy and the challenge of stability. We believe that the freedom of expression and the right to assemble peacefully should be respected by the authorities. Demonstrations should not be repressed by force. At the same time, we hope that demonstrators behave responsibly and refrain from any use of violence."

1522Ashraf Talfik, an architect taking part in the protests in Cairo, believes they are tantalisingly close to the end of an era: "The people have spoken. The opinion of the Egyptians on the streets is very clear. Hosni Mubarak's time is over. The game is over," he tells the BBC.

1516Lyndon in Chelmsford, UK, writes: "I've just been contacted by my ex-wife who lives in Cairo. She tells me that all rail services have now stopped, the issuing of pre-paid mobile cards, which most people use, has been halted, access to the internet has been stopped. People can't get around the city by public transport and she feels the situation worsening. "

1514Thousands of foreign nationals caught up in the anti-government protests in Egypt are trying to flee the unrest. A number of countries, including the US, UK, China and Japan are organising special charter flights to evacuate their citizens. Indonesia is sending military transport aircraft to bring its citizens home. New Zealand says it could do the came. Many countries around the world are advising their nationals not to travel to Egypt.

1512BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner says: "Out of all of Egypt's state institutions, it is the military that is now facing the biggest dilemma. Should they continue to support their clearly unpopular president, or urge him to step down as Tunisia's military did with their president earlier this month? Clearly, the street protests have not yet reached the tipping point where senior military officers withdraw that vital support, even if some units have been allowing protesters to draw graffiti on their vehicles calling for the president's removal. Featuring prominently in their calculations will be the annual military subsidy from Washington, totalling $1.3bn. The Egyptian military know that would probably be withdrawn if their country moved to an Islamist government so there will be many who want to preserve something of the status quo. But the true test for the military may yet be to come. And that is the street protests grow out of control and Egypt's largely popular military are ordered to open fire on their own people, a nightmare scenario for government and protesters alike."

1508 Anika in Cairo writes: "I have talked to more than 30 army people and they have told me that they will be on the side of people. Even if they are ordered to fire."

1505BBC Arabic's Nagwa El-Gebeily has just spoken to Um Muhammad, a housewife who lives in Cairo's al-Matariya district, about rising food prices, which have been a trigger of the recent unrest in North Africa. "Some goods are available on the shops, but they're expensive, and there are large queues for bread," Um Muhammad says, adding that there is a severe shortage of fresh vegetables. "We are worried about everything - the whole world, the whole country, our children, our work. Not just food," she adds.

1457 Dina Salah writes: "I'm an Egyptian in Japan. I have never been prouder of my people than today. I'd do anything to get on the first plane back to Egypt, stand with the masses in Tahrir Square, and repeat "Down with Mubarak". I just had a phone call with one of my friends - he is standing in the middle of Tahrir Squre, amongst what he says is about 200,000 people and the sight is giving him chills down the spine. I wish I was there."

1455

Al-Jazeera journalist Dan Nolan, who was detained earlier

tweets: "We're okay, they held us for 3 hours, we've been released, took cameras, laptops and phones."

1453Former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, now a Middle East envoy, tells the BBC that President Hosni Mubarak should be involved in any democratic change in Egypt. "You've got a regime that has been in power for a long time; you've got a movement for democracy and change; but you've also got an Islamist movement, which means you cannot be sure what type of change will be produced there," he says.

1448The US embassy in Cairo says it is making arrangements to "provide transportation to safe haven locations in Europe" for all US citizens who wish to leave Egypt. Flights to evacuation points will begin later on Monday. Priority will be given to persons with medical emergencies or severe medical conditions.

1446State television announces that Egyptian airlines, presumably including the national carrier EgyptAir, will cancel all internal and external flights which are scheduled during the overnight curfews on Tuesday and Wednesday - between 1500 local time (1300 GMT) and 0800 (0600 GMT).

1443

ellozy

tweets: "#Mubarak halts railways to stop people from coming to #cairo on Tuesday. Doesn't he realise there are 22 million in #Cairo already?"

1436The BBC's Lyse Doucet in Cairo says: "There is a steady stream of people going to Tahrir Square, even families with children. Others are streaming out, saying they were on the early shift."

1432The billionaire Egyptian businessman, Naguib Sawaris, tells the BBC that his country needs an orderly transition to democracy soon to help the economy. Mr Sawaris, who heads the telecommunications and construction giant Orascom, says Egypt's politicians need to understand there is no going back. He says the decision to block internet and mobile phone networks was "stupid" and has done little to help the government's case. "The only way for this government to sustain stability is to sit down with the opposition voices and hear them out, and promise reforms and real democracy. That's the only way out," he adds.

1427The BBC's Jon Leyne has just flown into Cairo's international airport. "It's not quite chaos here, but pretty close to it. It is packed full of people. Hundreds of people are waiting outside, most of them tourists," he says. "The British Airways flight that I came in on was nearly empty, and the return flight in about an hour is over booked. It is nevertheless all quite orderly at the airport. I just saw a number of heavily armed soldiers walk past. And although there is a curfew in place, there is some traffic on the road."

1421Earlier, President Hosni Mubarak swore in a new cabinet. The most noticeable change was the replacement of the Interior Minister, Habib al-Adli. The BBC's Shahzeb Jillani says that as the head of the internal security force, Mr Adli was widely despised by anti-government protesters for what they condemned as police brutality. "He has now been replaced by a retired police officer, Mahmoud Wagdi. The finance minister, Youssef Boutros-Ghali, has also lost his job as concern grows about the impact of a week of protests on the economy. But will the latest reshuffle go some way to satisfy the demonstrators? Many say not until Mr Mubarak is himself removed from power," our correspondent adds.

1413The BBC's Jeannie Assad in Cairo says: There are thousands of people in Tahrir Square today. Leaflets are being distributed to the crowds calling on the army to take the people's side and to resist their leaders' orders to go against the people.

1407The opposition is calling for the largest demonstration yet in Cairo on Tuesday. The "march of a million" is reportedly seen as an attempt to retake the initiative in the face of a government campaign to cast the uprising as an incubator of lawlessness. Reports say train services will be cancelled across Egypt to stop people joining in.

1400BBC Monitoring reports that the official and pro-government newspapers in the Middle East are looking nervously at the implications of the Egyptian unrest. In the Jordanian daily, al-Rai, Sultan al-Hattab writes: "The influenza for change is blowing in some Arab countries and is causing deaths." An editorial in Algeria's al-Fadjr says: "We will without a doubt come to know new patterns of democracy that do not come as a result of US tanks… Rather, a democracy of different standards - one that does not guarantee US interests or Israel's security."

1351The army is installing reinforced concrete barriers around Tahrir Square in central Cairo, a day before a mass demonstration called by the opposition to mark one week of anti-government protests. The 1m (3.3ft) high wall will restrict pedestrian access to the area, which has been a focus of the recent unrest.

1346

Dan Nolan, one of the al-Jazeera journalists who was briefly detained,

tweets: "Losing my phone now. Think we are ok. #Egypt #Jan25."

1342Al-Jazeera now says its six journalists have been released, but that their camera equipment remains seized.

1339The Egyptian military says it has detained about 50 people who were trying to steal artefacts into the world-famous Egyptian National Museum in central Cairo. Snipers are now stationed on the roof of the building, and dozens of soldiers are patrolling the grounds, according to the Associated Press. Looters broke into the museum on Friday, damaging two mummies and about 75 small artefacts.

1336The US state department has called for the release of the al-Jazeera journalists detained in Cairo, the Reuters news agency reports.

1331Al-Jazeera confirms that six of its journalists have been detained by the authorities in Cairo, along with their camera equipment. The journalists work for its English-language TV channel.

1320 Mohamed Ibrahim in London writes: "To America and Israel in particular, you either have one friend in Egypt and 84 million down, or 84 million friends and one down. Don't be afraid, the Egyptian people will choose an ally figure to the west, they can't bear another extreme leader - we still have a scar on our faces. Put your bets on the Egyptian people and you will have the support of 84 million."

1320 wewantbbcchineseradioback writes: "As a Chinese this Egyptian demonstration very much reminds me of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protest. I am extremely concerned and wish that this time history will stand on the side of the people."

1313 Apparently

an eight-year-old Saudi girl's message to Mr Mubarak

is becoming a bit of a hit on YouTube... though one wonders whether her message might not also resonate at home.

1307The BBC's John Simpson - on the road from Alexandria to Cairo - says he just drove past a prison where there was a massive breakout by some 8,000 prisoners amid the unrest. For the next 20 miles (32km) or so, the road was littered with prison uniforms thrown off by the escapees.

1300

Amr El Beleidy

tweets about the atmosphere in Tahrir Square: "Tahrir Square is a massive festival, morale is high, numbers are huge, people and army are super nice."

1256 News agencies AFP and AP say Mr Mubarak has sworn in a new cabinet - with the headline change the sacking of hated Interior Minister Habib al-Adli and his replacement by retired police general, Mahmoud Wagdy.

1254 European Union chief diplomat Catherine Ashton urges President Mubarak to immediately hold talks with the opposition and respond to the aspirations of anti-government protesters, reports AFP.

1250 State TV says all trains have been cancelled ahead of the "million-strong march" called tomorrow against President Mubarak, AFP reports.

1248

al-Jazeera reporter Dan Nolan

tweets: "Unsure if arrested or about to be deported. 6 of us held at army checkpoint outside Hilton hotel. Equipment seized too."

1245

CNN correspondent Ivan Watson

tweets: "Tanks & armored personnel carriers parked in front of Pyramids of Giza.Scores of soldiers. Officer insists Pyramids still open for tourists."

1243 The BBC's Jon Leyne calls in from a British Airways flight from London to Cairo to say the captain told passengers the flight would be diverted to Athens - but that the flight is now once again bound for Cairo.

1240 Wael Nawara, secretary general of opposition party El Ghad, tells the BBC President Mubarak is "in denial": "The sooner he gets out of his state of denial the sooner we can sit down and negotiate. He can pretend as long as he wants that things will be back to normal, but every day, hundreds of thousands go to Tahrir Square." "I think he is playing on time, trying to starve the people... He cannot be a president of a country with no citizens, because the citizens of the country have made it clear that he will have to kill 80 million people before things will go back to how they were before."

1239 A new Egyptian government has been formed, an official says according to AFP.

1233 The BBC's Jim Muir in Tahrir Square says: "The crowds are steadily building up - along with the intensity of the helicopter surveillance - but this is not intimidating protesters, many of whom are singing and chanting slogans against Mr Mubarak. It seems all 40,000-odd people here will be defying the curfew which comes into force today at 1500 local time - just half an hour from now. One problem for the big protest called for tomorrow is that many people are too worried about looters to leave their homes. The other question is whether word will get out sufficiently."

1221 Qatar-based satellite TV station al-Jazeera says five of its English service journalists have been detained in Egypt - a day after the network was told to shut down its operations in the country, reports Reuters.

1220

Jonathan Rugman, correspondent for Channel 4 News

tweets: "Every time military helicopter passes over crowd shouts "leave leave!" such defiance unthinkable 7 days ago."

1216 Foreign leaders are all worrying about being seen as on the wrong side of history by giving Mr Mubarak any continuing support, says the BBC's security correspondent Frank Gardner. It's fair to assume that privately diplomats are giving Mr Mubarak an even stronger message than they are publicly. At 82, it's inevitable that he will have to stand down some time soon - but it's a question of whether it's days or months, our correspondent says.

1215

3arabawy:

tweets: "I spoke with a trade unionist in Suez just now. The protests continue. Popular committees are running security. Police have vanished"

1205 The BBC's Jim Muir in Tahrir Square in Cairo says helicopters are circling but there is no real sense of menace. The focus of the thousands of people gathered there is the big march planned for tomorrow. A lot fear that this protest may run out of steam before Mr Mubarak steps down. Some have dressed in shrouds, saying they are willing to give their lives to this movement. But for others, there is a carnival atmosphere.

1150 Gawdat el-Malt denies being appointed as Egypt's new finance minister, al-Arabiya TV reports according to Reuters - contradicting what sources told Reuters earlier.

1150

Mostafa M Gaafar

tweets from Cairo: "Stores are running out of stock instantly as worried citizen buy supplies for weeks ahead."

1150

lindsayscarroll

tweets: "People in downtown are stocking up on groceries at the market that's open. Internet cafe full"

1145

3arabawy:

tweets: "The army is protecting police stations that haven't been burnt down. Traffic police stay close to army personnel for protection"

1145

Maat, writes in Tanatif min Hayati blog:

"They hit us bad. They shot tear gas at us, I saw people running and screaming and all I can remember is the tweeted instruction "Do not rub your eyes". I tried, but my eyes were on fire, I didn't rub them but ended up walking blindly into a wall.."

1138

Director of Research at the Brookings Doha centre Shadi Hamid

tweets: "Looks like we've reached a turning point. Omar Sharif calls on Mubarak to resign."

Perhaps a tongue-in-cheek comment about the film director's intervention earlier on Monday.

1137Professor Fawaz Gerges from the London School of Economics tells the BBC that the crisis is having a major impact on regional and world economy - and the domestic economy, of which tourism is a major component. He says markets prefer dictators and stability - but that if stability returns things will probably recover very quickly. A prolonged crisis could have a devastating impact on both the middle class and the poor - but on the plus side, the crisis could end up reinvigorating Egypt's economy and society.

1124 The BBC's security correspondent Frank Gardner says this protest movement is concentrated in the urban centres such as Cairo, Alexandria and Suez, and many Egyptian peasants and farmers are likely to be quite unsettled by it. On Mubarak's apparent intransigence to leave office, Frank Gardner says he has interviewed Mubarak and he is a man convinced that power is his birthright.

1120 Sources tell Reuters that the Egyptian leadership has formed a new cabinet, replacing Finance Minister Youssef Boutros-Ghali with Gawdat el-Malt (who has headed the audit office and gained some popularity for addressing corruption) and bringing in a new interior minister, General Mahmoud Wagdy, previously head of Cairo criminal investigations department and also a former head of prisons. Protesters had demanded former Interior Minister Habib al-Adli be sacked after brutal police treatment of protesters.

1118 The Muslim Brotherhood is seeking to form a broad political committee with Mohamed ElBaradei to talk to the army, a senior member tells Reuters.

1117 Egypt's banks will be closed for a third day on Tuesday, the central bank says, adding it has not yet set a date for them to be reopened, reports Reuters.

1112 Gil Hoffman, political correspondent for the Jerusalem Post, tells the BBC that Israelis are "extremely concerned" about what's going on in Egypt. "Israelis appreciate the fact that the Egyptian people want to have the democracy that we enjoy over here and we believe that that can best be brought about with an orderly transition, gradual change. We're very scared that on our border we will have the Muslim Brotherhood in power. We saw what happened with Iran."

1110

Monasoush

tweets: "Governmental institutions are trying to force their employees to go to Tahrir square to chant for Mubarak."

1107 Professor Rosemary Hollis of City University, London tells the BBC that the Muslim Brotherhood are not "extremist Islamists". "In a way it has suited Mubarak to try and paint to the US the idea that other than him you only have Muslim extremists. It's not true. There's a broad spectrum of opposition to the continuation of his rule."

1104 The BBC's Jim Muir in Tahrir Square in Cairo says: Nobody is in control of this uprising. Lots of people are taking part but there is no clear succession - people just want elections and a new start. There are no police here in the Square - just a very relaxed looking army. I'm not really aware of whether the police have actually gone back to the positions they disappeared from a couple of days ago.

1100

Manal Hassan

tweets: "I'm hearing news of a local internet being established in Alexandria (basically dns servers and local websites)."

1056 The Suez canal is functioning at "full capacity", AFP news agency quotes state media as saying.

1050

Jan25Voices

tweets: Near Tahrir "we are shopping for brooms and plastic bags to take to the demonstration. A positive image is critical".

1043 The Middle East is diseased with stagnation and its leaders must "upgrade" themselves and their societies to keep up with the demands of their people, Syrian President Bashir al-Assad says, according to AFP news agency.

1042 Abdel Bari Atwan, editor of al-Quds al-Arabi newspaper in London, says: "There is a huge gap between Egypt's old and ailing rulers and those they rule, 50% of whom are under 25. Egypt's people are saying we need a leadership which understands our society and can provide us with us jobs and food. We need completely fresh faces to guide us to a more dignified future."

1036 Oil producers' cartel Opec is watching the situation in Egypt but will only add more supply to the oil market if there is a real shortage, Secretary General Abdullah al-Badri says according to Reuters.

1033 Thousands of people are filling Tahrir Square, reports the BBC's Tim Willcox. "The army has to choose between Egypt and Mubarak," one banner reads. A key question is how the army will respond if the police get tough on demonstrators.

1031 Egyptian Novelist Ahdaf Soueif tells the BBC World Service that so far the behaviour of the army has been "unfailingly courteous". "Basically what we've got so far is the army actually safeguarding the streets and working with the people. The young people and the activists on the streets are talking to the army, are standing with soldiers, sharing tea and biscuits with them, everything so far is very friendly."

1026 Jane Sarhan from Lancashire, the UK, who is currently stuck in Alexandria tells us: "We travelled to Egypt last Sunday for a family wedding. The wedding was scheduled to take place on Saturday night at 2000. Unfortunately, the curfew was enforced. The wedding ceremony, which initially had 200 guests, ended up being held in our apartment with only 10 guests. The bride was very distraught. "Bizarrely, we are now getting used to the sound of tanks on the street and the sound of gunfire outside our apartment block. Local people have organised a quasi neighbourhood watch. They've set up road blocks and are armed with pieces of wood and kitchen knives. Last night they found three potential looters and handed them over to the army who are stationed near our building... "[UK Foreign Secretary] William Hague is saying that people should leave but nothing is in place to assist that to happen. Other countries are helping their nationals to get out of the country, so why are we not doing the same? Can't the Navy help?"

1012 The evening curfew will begin at 1500 local time, the BBC hears - the curfew seems to begin earlier every day but many people are ignoring it.

1008 Egypt's stock exchange will be closed on Tuesday for a third straight day because of the protests, an official at the bourse tells Reuters news agency.

1007 International ratings agency Moody's cuts Egypt's government bond rating and revises its outlook to negative, at least the second downward revision by an international ratings agency since the mass demonstrations began, reports Associated Press. It says its cut is driven by the unrest, noting that "Egypt suffers from deep-seated political and socio-economic challenges".

1004 The BBC's Jim Muir in Tahrir Square says people are gathering there - there are some 4-5,000 there now - and chanting slogans. But he says they are beginning to worry what they will do if Mr Mubarak refuses to step down. They say are not satisfied with cabinet reshuffles; they want wholesale change.

0932 Colette Forrest, a UK schoolteacher in Cairo: Everything is closed: schools, shops, banks, nothing is working. Everyone is adamant they will not leave the streets until Mubarak stands down. We want to get back to the UK but staff at the UK embassy are just reading from a script and won't give us specific advice.

0916 Peter Bouckeart from the US-based Human Rights Watch group has just arrived back in Cairo from Alexandria. He says he is less concerned than many about what is happening. "It is remarkable to see how people are forming their own local committees to provide security; these are NOT vigilante groups - they are being carefully controlled and they are handing over looters to army. They are part of a web of local popular structures which are springing up - there are street-level, neighbourhood committees and city-wide committees. "People seem very hopeful about their future."

0915 Ahmed al-Gaddar, a protester in Cairo, says: "Last night I stayed home, protecting private properties in the district where I live. The plan was: some of my friends would be staying in Tahrir, this morning they'll replace us, they'll get back home and we're going to rejoin at Tahrir Square. So we're switching, we're shifting, we're doing shifts in Tahrir Square." He says the army are co-operating with these locally organised security groups.

0913 The BBC's Jon Donnison in Jerusalem says Israeli ministers have been ordered not to say anything about the events in Egypt, such are the sensitivities involved. "Israel wants stability, and there is clearly a lack of that at the moment."

0901 The BBC's Tim Willcox in Cairo says: Local reports suggesting the Egyptian opposition are calling for a general strike to be held today and a "million-strong march" tomorrow. The police have now returned to Cairo's streets - it will be interesting how the crowds in Tahrir Square respond. Vigilante checkpoints have popped up around the city manned by men armed with whatever weapons they can get their hands on. It is very tense already.

0900 Welcome to the BBC's live coverage of Egypt's seventh day of anti-government protests. We'll be bringing you the latest updates late into the night, incorporating reports from our correspondents on the ground, expert analysis, the most recent images and your reaction from around the world, which you can send via email, text or twitter. We'll publish what we can.

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