Two days after leaving the army the task of maintaining order in the streets of Cairo, police made his comeback this Monday in the Egyptian capital. It was a test day to the regime of Hosni Mubarak and the demonstrators, who were violently opposed to the service of order on Friday. Started in the morning, this return took place in complete secrecy. These are the first traffic officers who have appeared in the center of the city, followed in the day by uniformed police.
The news has not pleased some of the protesters actually making a difference between the police and the army."The soldiers sympathized with us, nothing to do with police brutality, which are themselves corrupt and sadistic with the people," says Hany, a young protester posted near Tahrir Square in the heart of the capital. Other Cairenes as Imad prefer to laugh. "I admit that I have not really missed and I would have preferred that they remain stashed or on vacation," he said.
Absent subscribers
Deployed sparingly, often very close to the protective shadow of army tanks, police intervene in civil case by case basis. They refrain from provoking the people. Some of them are content to call to order bystanders taking pictures with their phones.In their sights, too, Western journalists, some of which have been confiscated equipment and cameras. Experienced a mishap the previous day by a team of France 2, on the initiative of the intelligence service of the army.
In the districts held by the Muslim Brotherhood, very active in the streets since the start of the protest on January 25, the police remained conspicuously absent. In El-Manial on the island of Rhoda, it is the district vigilance committees that manage the traffic. Sometimes armed with sticks and knives, young people will monitor suspicious movements. Day and night.
