Saturday, February 19, 2011

Cairo crowd addressed by cleric


HUNDREDS of thousands of Egyptians have packed Tahrir Square for a day of prayer and celebrations to mark one week since the fall of president Hosni Mubarak.

The massive crowd - which rivalled those at the biggest marches during this month's uprising - took to the square draped in Egyptian flags for a "Friday of Victory and Continuation."

The influential Sunni scholar Yusuf al Qaradawi addressed the huge crowd during a Friday prayer sermon.

Praising the revolution, he called on Arab leaders to listen to their people.

Qaradawi, an Egyptian-born cleric who has lived in Qatar since the early 1960s, is considered to be a leading intellectual and religious figure, with close links to the Muslim Brotherhood. The group was officially banned under the Mubarak regime, though its activities were largely tolerated.

"The world has changed, the world has progressed, and the Arab world has changed within," Qaradawi said, after praising the revolution that ended Mubarak's 32-year rule.

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* Scholar tells Arab regimes to listen to people The Australian, 1 day ago
* Elation in Egypt NEWS.com.au, 7 days ago
* Time for Egyptian elections Herald Sun, 7 days ago
* Regime crumbling fast to people power The Australian, 8 days ago
* Cairo protesters in 'Friday of martyrs' NEWS.com.au, 8 days ago

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"Don't obstruct the people. Don't try to lead them on with empty talk. Conduct a real dialogue with them," he added.

Protesters performed their prayers in massed ranks, with tanks surrounding the square and a light security presence.

Prior to the prayers, a military band in full dress uniform was playing patriotic music to the cheers of the adoring crowd.

The Muslim Brotherhood has been the subject of concern in the US and other Western states in the wake of uprisings across the Arab world.

There are fears that the group may rise to power through open elections, only to pursue an Islamist agenda and the imposition of Sharia law, thereby stifling democratic reforms.

Israel also holds fears about the group, and whether it would uphold the 1979 peace treaty signed between Egypt and Israel.

In a troubling incident during Friday's events in Tahrir Square, Google executive Wael Ghonim - who emerged as a leading democratic voice in the Egyptian uprising - was barred from walking onto the stage by security guards.

When Ghonim tried to take the stage, men who appeared to be guarding Qaradawi barred him from doing so. Ghonim left the square with his face hidden by an Egyptian flag.

US Director of National Intelligence James Clapper said that despite the Muslim Brotherhood's claims, it was "obviously not secular," in comments made to a Senate hearing on intelligence.

"It's hard to point to the specific agenda of the Muslim Brotherhood as a group," Clapper said, calling it a "large heterogeneous organization" with some conservative factions as well as liberal factions that are "more inclined to work through the secular political process."

Meanwhile, several hundred protesters gathered in central Cairo to take part in a "sorry, president" rally for the ousted Mubarak.

"The people want to honour the president," they chanted, holding pictures of the 82-year-old and waving Egyptian flags.

Read more: http://www.news.com.au/world/cairo-crowd-addressed-by-cleric/story-fn6sb9br-1226008477515#ixzz1EQIvUeI3

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