CAIRO: The Egyptian army occupied Cairo's Tahrir Square again on Tuesday night. The move could contribute to growing distrust of the army among Egyptians, particularly following the army's decision to forcefully clear Tahrir Square at 3am on Saturday morning. Saturday morning's violence led to a four-day blockade of the square by demonstrators. On Tuesday, tensions grew between demonstrators and local businessmen. Many of the shopkeepers located around the square demanded an end to the street barricades, which prevented business. The demonstrators, for their part, stressed the importance of the blockade in order to put pressure on the ruling military council to prosecute former President Hosni Mubarak. Around 3pm on Tuesday, people in civilian clothes began to remove the blockades around the square. The move generated heated debates. As tensions rose, people in the area were randomly accused of being baltagiyya, the Egyptian colloquial word for thugs, or thieves. Bikya Masr witnessed some individuals forcefully dragged from the scene. When a group of soldiers arrived on the scene they were greeted with applause. Throughout the course of the evening, eyewitnesses said the army resorted to rising tensions in the square by making arrests, and later by forcefully evicting the remaining demonstrators from the square. At least 13 were arrested. A small group of demonstrators remained in the area, watching from a distance. “The army arrested many today, but we will come back on Friday,” said one man, smiling. BM
