Two years after Mubarak’s fall, Egyptians still fighting

<div style='float:right;width:100%;' align='right'><em> Justin Merriman | Tribune-Review</em></div>An Egyptian woman flees from tear gas as protesters clash with police as they try to dismantle a wall blocking an entrance to Tahrir Square in Cairo on Thursday, Jan. 24, 2013 — the eve of the the second anniversary of the uprising that overthrew Hosni Mubarak.

<div style='float:right;width:100%;' align='right'><em> Justin Merriman | Tribune-Review</em></div>A masked Egyptian protester stands near a concrete wall in Tahrir Square in Cairo on Thursday, Jan. 24, 2013, during a clash with police.

<div style='float:right;width:100%;' align='right'><em> Justin Merriman | Tribune-Review</em></div>An Egyptian throws a Molotov cocktail over a wall as protesters clash with police in Tahrir Square in Cairo on Thursday, Jan. 24, 2013, the eve of the the second anniversary of the uprising that overthrew Hosni Mubarak.

<div style='float:right;width:100%;' align='right'><em> Justin Merriman | Tribune-Review</em></div>Protesters stand atop a concrete wall blocking a street leading to Tahrir Square on Thursday, Jan. 24, 2013, in Cairo — the eve of the second anniversary of the uprising that overthrew Hosni Mubarak.

<div style='float:right;width:100%;' align='right'><em> Justin Merriman | Tribune-Review</em></div>A protester gathers stones during a clash with police in Tahrir Square in Cairo on Thursday, the eve of the second anniversary of the uprising that overthrew Hosni Mubarak. The protesters tried to dismantle a wall of concrete blocks that blocked a street leading to the square.

<div style='float:right;width:100%;' align='right'><em> Justin Merriman | Tribune-Review</em></div>An Egyptian carries a canister of tear gas to throw back at police as protesters clash with police in Tahrir Square in Cairo on Thursday, Jan. 24, 2013, the eve of the the second anniversary of the uprising that overthrew Hosni Mubarak.

<div style='float:right;width:100%;' align='right'><em> Justin Merriman | Tribune-Review</em></div>A young boy stands in Tahrir Square in Cairo on the eve of the the second anniversary of the uprising that overthrew Hosni Mubarak. The square was the focal point of demonstrations that broke out on January 25, 2010, and led to the ouster of Mubarak 18 days later.

<div style='float:right;width:100%;' align='right'><em> Justin Merriman | Tribune-Review</em></div>A man stands with his young son in Tahrir Square in Cairo on the eve of the the second anniversary of the uprising that broke out on January 25, 2010, and led to the ouster of Hosni Mubarak 18 days later.

<div style='float:right;width:100%;' align='right'><em> Justin Merriman | Tribune-Review</em></div>An Egyptian protester throws a stone at police inTahrir Square in Cairo on Thursday, Jan. 24, 2013. Clashes continued into the night, with the injured on both sides taken to hospitals.

<div style='float:right;width:100%;' align='right'><em> Justin Merriman | Tribune-Review</em></div>Protesters use a chain in an attempt to dismantle a concrete wall blocking a street leading to Tahrir Square in Cairo on Thursday, Jan. 24, 2013, the eve of the the second anniversary of the uprising that overthrew Hosni Mubarak.

<div style='float:right;width:100%;' align='right'><em> Justin Merriman | Tribune-Review</em></div>A protester beats a drum as they chant while trying to dismantle a concrete wall blocking a street leading to Tahrir Square on Thursday, Jan. 24, 2013, in Cairo, the eve of the the second anniversary of the uprising that overthrew Hosni Mubarak.

<div style='float:right;width:100%;' align='right'><em> Justin Merriman | Tribune-Review</em></div>A young boy stands in the midst of a crowd watching as police clash with protesters in Tahrir Square in Cairo, on the eve of the the second anniversary of the uprising that broke out on January 25, 2010.

<div style='float:right;width:100%;' align='right'><em> Justin Merriman | Tribune-Review</em></div>Egyptians flee tear gas during a clash with police in Tahrir Square in Cairo on Thursday, Jan. 24, 2013, the eve of the the second anniversary of the uprising that overthrew Hosni Mubarak.

<div style='float:right;width:100%;' align='right'><em> Justin Merriman | Tribune-Review</em></div>An Egyptian man stands in Tahrir Square in Cairo on Thursday, Jan. 24, 2013, the eve of the the second anniversary of the uprising that overthrew Hosni Mubarak.

<div style='float:right;width:100%;' align='right'><em> Justin Merriman | Tribune-Review</em></div>Men stand near some of the now famous graffiti in Tahrir Square in Cairo on Thursday, Jan. 24, 2013.

<div style='float:right;width:100%;' align='right'><em> Justin Merriman | Tribune-Review</em></div>A masked protester stands at the base of a concrete wall blocking a street leading to Tahrir Square on Thursday, Jan. 24, 2013, in Cairo. The protesters clashed with police as they tried to dismantle the wall.

<div style='float:right;width:100%;' align='right'><em> Justin Merriman | Tribune-Review</em></div>A man stands atop a makeshift stage that is being constructed in Tahrir Square in Cairo on Thursday, Jan. 24, 2013, in preparation of the second anniversary of the uprising that overthrew Hosni Mubarak.

About Betsy Hiel

Betsy Hiel
Middle East correspondent
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

Details

Go to class="bold">TribLive.com for a photo gallery by Trib photographer Justin Merriman.

By Betsy Hiel

Published: Friday, January 25, 2013, 12:05 a.m.
Updated: Saturday, January 26, 2013

CAIRO — On the eve of the second anniversary of the revolution that deposed President Hosni Mubarak, Egyptians continue to fight for “Bread, Freedom and Social Justice!” — one of the demands that sent millions into the streets in 2011.

Today's opposition fears the creation of an Islamic state in the Arab world's most populous nation, and with it the loss of women's rights and other freedoms.

In Tahrir Square, the revolution's epicenter, signs still demand “the downfall of the regime.” But those signs refer to Muslim Brotherhood's Muhamed Morsy, who replaced Mubarak.

The Brotherhood and its allies, the ultra-Islamic Salafis, control Egypt's presidency and parliament.

The anniversary arrives with Egypt in economic crisis. Tourism, once a main currency-earner for businesses and the state, is practically nonexistent; the Egyptian pound has been in freefall since December, and new taxes on basic goods are expected.

On Thursday, protesters in Tahrir Square tried to level cement blocks barricading side streets. They threw Molotov cocktails and flares at riot police on the other side of the walls as police fired tear gas. Clashes continued into the night, with the injured on both sides taken to hospitals.

Betsy Hiel is the Tribune-Review's foreign correspondent; email her at bhiel@tribweb.com. Email Justin Merriman at jmerriman@tribweb.com.

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Two years after Mubarak’s fall, Egyptians still fighting

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Two years after Mubarak’s fall, Egyptians still fighting

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