Egyptians call for Tunisian-style demos - which of the Arab dictatorships will fall next?

Press TV
Sat, 15 Jan 2011 06:10 UTC

Hundreds of Egyptians have gathered outside the Tunisian Embassy in Cairo to show their solidarity with Tunisians and have called for protests similar to those in Tunisia.

Egyptian activists opposed to President Hosni Mubarak's three-decade regime also looked to Friday's events in Tunisia with hope.

Activists are out on the streets to celebrate the overthrow of Tunisian President Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, who has fled the country. Anti-government demonstrations drove Ben Ali from power on Friday after 23 years in office.

The celebrating Egyptians congratulated the Tunisian people over their victory against their government, AFP reported.

"Ben Ali, tell Mubarak a plane is waiting for him too!" and "We are next, we are next, listen to the Tunisians, it's your turn Egyptians!" chanted the demonstrators, surrounded by heavy security. Reports say that Egyptian police have fanned out across the capital.

From Morocco to Egypt to Jordan and beyond, the Arab world was swept by the kind of excitement that augurs epochal change.

Egyptians, who have complained of economic hardships similar to the situation in Tunisia, are now calling for similar protests in Egypt.

Cairo has regularly been criticized for failing to lift an emergency law in place for three decades.

The Egyptian demonstrators said their government has failed to curb high unemployment and to lower food prices.

Ben Ali fled the North African state earlier on Friday.

The Tunisian authorities declared a state of emergency in response to demonstrations sparked by the suicide attempt last month of Mohamed Bouazizi, who set himself on fire after police prevented him from selling fruit and vegetables to earn a living.