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Friday, 11 February 2011 06:12

The Internet Explodes As Egypt's Dictator Finally Quits

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The Internet Explodes As Egypt's Dictator Finally Quits
It’s only fitting to outsource my lede to Sultan al-Qassemi, one of the leading Twitter chroniclers of Egypt’s revolution. Vice President Omar Suleiman just announced, “Mubarak has resigned. He has delegated the responsibility of running the country to the Supreme Military Council.”

Don’t even bother to try following Egypt on Twitter right now. Using the social networking service that allowed the world to follow the uprising in real time is like drinking from a firehose. Monasosh, another leading Egypt-tweeter, reports, “Shit! Ppl are going crazy, screaming and running.” Danger Room friend Michael Hanna of the Century Foundation: “I am close by Tahrir and the roar even outside the square is really loud. Some happy people right now.”

On We Are All Khalid Said, the Facebook page that galvanized the 18-day mass protests, Nana Mohamed comments (as per GoogleTranslate), “Egypt gets the salvation of God.” It’s the polar opposite mood of the fury expressed on the page last night after dictator Hosni Mubarak defiantly vowed to stay in power until presidential elections this summer.

“I’ve worked my whole life to see the power of the people come to the fore,” activist Rabab Al Mahdi told Al Jazeera through tears.  “I never thought I would be alive to see it. It’s not just about Mubarak. It’s a protest that brought about the people’s power to bring about the change that no one, no one thought was possible.”

The euphoria is unimaginable. Peaceful protests, propelled but by no means determined by social media, dislodged a 30-year dictatorship in one of the most important Middle Eastern countries. Neither violent repression nor an Internet shutdown nor mass arrests of Facebook-fueled human rights activists could stop what’s become the #Jan25 revolution. Al Jazeera was blamed for the protests by Suleiman and its reporters were physically attacked and detained, but the network went to round-the-clock coverage that kept pressure on Mubarak.

Despite the joyousness now, Egypt is now under military control. The fact that Suleiman announced the new political situation suggests — no one knows yet — that he believes he has its support to remain in power, something that the protesters absolutely refuse. The U.S. military believes that it can work with its longtime Egyptian military partner, but no one knows what will happen next.

But Issandr El Amrani, the premiere blogger covering the uprisings, tweets: “Enjoy tonight and leave worrying about the army and the transition till tomorrow.”


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