Egypt's government meets opposition as protests continue
Cairo, Egypt (CNN) -- Opposition leaders and intellectuals met with Egypt's vice president Saturday to discuss avenues for easing embattled President Hosni Mubarak from power, the number one demand of of tens of thousands of demonstrators.
Among the proposals under discussion is Article 139 of the constitution, which allows for the vice president to assume control if the president is no longer able.
At least one opposition group, the leftist Tagammu party, is asking the government to activate the article's powers so that Suleiman can take charge immediately and allow Mubarak to make a graceful exit.
A member of the self-declared Committee of the Wise, told CNN that Suleiman was willing to listen.
The group of independent elites -- intellectuals, artists, diplomats and businessmen -- wants to be at the table during crucial government transition talks.
They called on protests to continue at Tahrir Square every Tuesday and Friday until Mubarak "resigns and makes true the demands of
the people."
Mubarak, said the committee, can remain as a symbolic leader but should delegate to Suleiman responsibility for the transition period.
Saturday's talks were taking place as crowds massed again in downtown Cairo's Tahrir Square for a 12th day of protests demanding an end to Mubarak's 30-year authoritarian rule over the Arab world's most populous nation.
After chaos and bloodshed earlier in the week, Cairo remained calm Saturday.
Cars traveled over a nearby overpass in the central city. Outside the Egyptian Museum, people prayed as soldiers stood guard. Protesters who had spent the night swept sidewalks with palm branches and bought food from carts stationed in the square.
The justice minister announced that courts would reopen Sunday and the government eased its daily curfew now imposed from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m.
"We're in better shape," Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq said on state television. "And we can sense that day by day."
Heavy military presence persisted on the streets of central Cairo. Interior Ministry spokesman Ismail Othman said "the army remains neutral and is not taking sides because if we protect one side we will be perceived as biased.... our role is to prevent clashes and chaos as we separate the opposing groups."
But in a scene exposing how volatile the situation remains, demonstrators formed a human chain to prevent tanks from passing through the barricades into the anti-Mubarak enclave in Tahrir Square.
Activists block tanks from entering Tahrir Square
A witness said scuffles broke out when an army general asked demonstrators to take down their make-shift barricades of corrugated steel and debris, put up during the 48 hours of fighting near the landmark Egyptian Museum.
And hours earlier, gunshots rang out as protesters said scores of Mubarak defenders tried to assault the square early Saturday morning. Troops fired into the air to disperse them, according to the protesters.
Meanwhile, Mohamed ElBaradei's National Association for Change and the Tagammu party's leader announced a newly formed opposition group of 10 people, including ElBaradei, Muslim Brotherhood leader Mohamed Beltagy and liberal Ghad party leader Ayman Nour.
They called for Mubarak's immediate resignation and the right for peaceful demonstration.
"We have been in agreement right now that we'd probably have a presidential council of three members including somebody from the army," ElBaradei told CNN. "We have a caretaker government ... who would then run the country for a year, prepare the grounds for the necessary changes in the electoral process to ensure that we will have all what we need for a free and fair election," he said.
Tagammu and the liberal Wafd party met with Suleiman Saturday, buoyed by the government's promises to investigate the bloodshed at Tahrir Square.
At least 11 people were killed and more than 900 injured, according to the Health Ministry. Many believe the violence was instigated by government provocateurs.
But some opposition groups are refusing to come to the table until Mubarak steps down.
"The so-called dialogue is the first step to exhaust this revolution. The president must go," said Mohammed Habib, deputy chairman of the Muslim Brotherhood, an opposition Islamist umbrella group that if officially banned but tolerated in Egypt.
The group reported that a security force accompanied by a "gang of thugs" stormed the office of its news website Friday and arrested the journalists, technicians and administrators. The Al-Jazeera news network reported a similar attack on its Cairo office.
Those attacks came after two days of violence and a government crackdown on journalists and human rights activists bearing witness to the crisis.
Cairo, Egypt (CNN) -- Opposition leaders and intellectuals met with Egypt's vice president Saturday to discuss avenues for easing embattled President Hosni Mubarak from power, the number one demand of of tens of thousands of demonstrators.
Among the proposals under discussion is Article 139 of the constitution, which allows for the vice president to assume control if the president is no longer able.
At least one opposition group, the leftist Tagammu party, is asking the government to activate the article's powers so that Suleiman can take charge immediately and allow Mubarak to make a graceful exit.
A member of the self-declared Committee of the Wise, told CNN that Suleiman was willing to listen.
The group of independent elites -- intellectuals, artists, diplomats and businessmen -- wants to be at the table during crucial government transition talks.
They called on protests to continue at Tahrir Square every Tuesday and Friday until Mubarak "resigns and makes true the demands of
the people."
Mubarak, said the committee, can remain as a symbolic leader but should delegate to Suleiman responsibility for the transition period.
Saturday's talks were taking place as crowds massed again in downtown Cairo's Tahrir Square for a 12th day of protests demanding an end to Mubarak's 30-year authoritarian rule over the Arab world's most populous nation.
After chaos and bloodshed earlier in the week, Cairo remained calm Saturday.
Cars traveled over a nearby overpass in the central city. Outside the Egyptian Museum, people prayed as soldiers stood guard. Protesters who had spent the night swept sidewalks with palm branches and bought food from carts stationed in the square.
The justice minister announced that courts would reopen Sunday and the government eased its daily curfew now imposed from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m.
"We're in better shape," Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq said on state television. "And we can sense that day by day."
Heavy military presence persisted on the streets of central Cairo. Interior Ministry spokesman Ismail Othman said "the army remains neutral and is not taking sides because if we protect one side we will be perceived as biased.... our role is to prevent clashes and chaos as we separate the opposing groups."
But in a scene exposing how volatile the situation remains, demonstrators formed a human chain to prevent tanks from passing through the barricades into the anti-Mubarak enclave in Tahrir Square.
Activists block tanks from entering Tahrir Square
A witness said scuffles broke out when an army general asked demonstrators to take down their make-shift barricades of corrugated steel and debris, put up during the 48 hours of fighting near the landmark Egyptian Museum.
And hours earlier, gunshots rang out as protesters said scores of Mubarak defenders tried to assault the square early Saturday morning. Troops fired into the air to disperse them, according to the protesters.
Meanwhile, Mohamed ElBaradei's National Association for Change and the Tagammu party's leader announced a newly formed opposition group of 10 people, including ElBaradei, Muslim Brotherhood leader Mohamed Beltagy and liberal Ghad party leader Ayman Nour.
They called for Mubarak's immediate resignation and the right for peaceful demonstration.
"We have been in agreement right now that we'd probably have a presidential council of three members including somebody from the army," ElBaradei told CNN. "We have a caretaker government ... who would then run the country for a year, prepare the grounds for the necessary changes in the electoral process to ensure that we will have all what we need for a free and fair election," he said.
Tagammu and the liberal Wafd party met with Suleiman Saturday, buoyed by the government's promises to investigate the bloodshed at Tahrir Square.
At least 11 people were killed and more than 900 injured, according to the Health Ministry. Many believe the violence was instigated by government provocateurs.
But some opposition groups are refusing to come to the table until Mubarak steps down.
"The so-called dialogue is the first step to exhaust this revolution. The president must go," said Mohammed Habib, deputy chairman of the Muslim Brotherhood, an opposition Islamist umbrella group that if officially banned but tolerated in Egypt.
The group reported that a security force accompanied by a "gang of thugs" stormed the office of its news website Friday and arrested the journalists, technicians and administrators. The Al-Jazeera news network reported a similar attack on its Cairo office.
Those attacks came after two days of violence and a government crackdown on journalists and human rights activists bearing witness to the crisis.
Some had predicted the demonstrations might lose their momentum. But Friday, dubbed the "Day of Departure" saw massive crowds gather in Cairo and other Egyptian cities to demand change.
February 5, 2011 -- Updated 1708 GMT (0108 HKT)
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