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11 Feb 2011 11:10

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World: BREAKING: Hosni Mubarak steps down as Egyptian president

  • yesterday In a defiant speech, Hosni Mubarak made it clear that he was in fact not stepping down from his perch as Egyptian leader.
  • today Vice President Omar Suleiman announced that Mubarak just stepped down today. Guess that wasn’t so true, huh? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

10 Feb 2011 21:52

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Biz: Did Mubarak’s insane speech help Wall Street today?

  • YES the speech helped stocks make a late-day rally source
  • » Why did that happen? Simply put, the stock market liked the fact that Mubarak said he was giving up much of his authority in Egypt to Omar Suleiman – not enough for protesters, but apparently enough for money managers. “The moment Mubarak said he would be giving up duties to his vice president, the market said it was a good thing and rose,” said Michael Holland, whose company manages billions in funds on the market.
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10 Feb 2011 21:37

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Politics: Mubarak’s speech made Obama, Leon Panetta look like fools

Uh-oh, someone bought into the narrative. (At a speech in Michigan, Obama suggested Egypt’s transition was imminent. Panetta did the same earlier in the day.) But so did everyone else. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

10 Feb 2011 21:21

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World: “The Worst Speech Ever”: Where do we go from Mubarak’s rant?

  • He offered a vaguely worded delegation of power to Vice President Omar Suleiman, long after everyone in Egypt had stopped listening. It is virtually impossible to conceive of a more poorly conceived or executed speech.
  • Foreign Policy writer Marc Lynch • Scoring the speech at home and saying the obvious. We could have made a better speech than Hosni Mubarak, and we suck at public speaking! That’s why we use the internet! Lynch notes that the speech from Omar Suleiman was as damaging, if not moreso than Mubarak’s, because it inextricably tied an unpopular figure to his potential successor – especially since he implicitly blamed Al Jazeera for his problems. “It solidified the already deep distrust of his role among most of the opposition and of the protestors,” Lynch wrote, “and tied his fate to that of Mubarak.” From here, things will only get worse for everyone involved – especially the United States, who have a hard game of chess ahead, and the protesters on the ground, who may grow more unruly and already have a protest planned for tomorrow. source
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10 Feb 2011 10:46

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World: Roundup: Reports confirming Mubarak’s possible departure

  • BBC Egyptian Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq told BBC Arabic that the possibility of Hosni Mubarak’s departure was being discussed, without giving a timetable.
  • Ch. 4 Reporter Lindsey Hilsum says that she got word from Hossam Badrawy, the new leader of Mubarak’s National Democratic Party, that he could be out tonight.
  • NBC The network says that they got confirmation that he is leaving from a source inside the presidential office, then confirmed it with another source. Hmm. source
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10 Feb 2011 10:21

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World: Protesters get their wish? Hosni Mubarak may leave office tonight

A Channel 4 reporter who spoke to National Democratic Party secretary-general Hossam Badrawy says that Mubarak could be out as soon as today. Whoa, this is big. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

08 Feb 2011 21:32

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World: Egypt gets strong scolding from U.S. over emergency law

  • Hey Egypt, your strongest ally is yelling at you. Here’s why. See, Egypt has this emergency law in place that allows them to detain protesters and other folks they don’t like without charge. And the United States doesn’t like this. Especially in the wake of comments that vice president Omar Suleiman made about the country not being ready for democracy. It also doesn’t help that he suggested that the government might step in to quell the protests. What does the U.S. think? Well, a few things, which they released in a statement today. First – Stop screwing with protesters. Second – Rescind an emergency law that allows the government to detain anyone for any reason. Third – Broaden the dialogue to allow opposition voices. And finally – Invite the opposition to the bargaining table. This hard line was needed before Suleiman was around, guys. Why did this guy get the golden ring, anyway? He’s terrible. source
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07 Feb 2011 20:33

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World: Wikileaks cable: Israel favored Omar Suleiman to replace Mubarak

  • 2011 Omar Suleiman, a diplomatic figure closely associated with Hosni Mubarak (but mostly unknown to the Egyptian public) was appointed as Mubarak’s vice-president – and potentially leader-in-waiting – to the anger of many Egyptians.
  • 2008 A newly-released Wikileaks cable suggests that Israel heavily favored Suleiman were Mubarak to die or become incapacitated: “There is no question that Israel is most comfortable with the prospect of Suleiman,” the wire said. source
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06 Feb 2011 11:25

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World: Muslim Brotherhood: We’re OK with Mubarak staying for now

  • We wanted the president to step down but, for now, we accept this arrangement as long as we feel there is a serious implementation.
  • Muslim Brotherhood senior leader Mohamed Saad El-Katatni • Revealing comfort with allowing Hosni Mubarak to stay in power of Egypt during a transition period. He said this after sitting down at a giant table with Vice President Omar Suleiman and other opposition leaders. The Muslim Brotherhood, currently barred from running in elections, joined the opposition late, eventually saying it shared their goals.  source
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05 Feb 2011 11:34

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World: How the U.S. hopes to shape Egypt’s transition from Mubarak

  • before Despite growing protests, the U.S. publicly showed in the past that it favored Hosni Mubarak to stay as Egyptian President.
  • now With growing pressure, Mubarak has possibly stepped down as his party’s leader*, but keeps his position as president, which the U.S. supports.
  • later The U.S. hopes to push for Omar Suleiman’s rise to power as part of a gradual transition, led by Suleiman, leading up to an election. source
  • » Update: There are conflicting reports on whether he actually stepped down from his party or not. We’ll keep you posted when we learn more.
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