Basic backgrounder on Egypt

[nadinbrzezinski]

he basics: Egypt is a large, mostly Arab, mostly Muslim country. At around 80 million people, it has the largest population in the Middle East and the third-largest in Africa. Most of Egypt is in North Africa, although the part of the country that borders Israel, the Sinai peninsula, is in Asia. Its other neighbors are Sudan (to the South), Libya (to the West), and Saudi Arabia (across the Gulf of Aqaba to the East). It has been ruled by Hosni Mubarak since 1981.

What’s happening? Inspired by the recent protests that led to the fall of the Tunisian government and the ousting of longtime Tunisian dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, Egyptians have joined other protesters across the Arab world (in Algeria, notably) in protesting their autocratic governments, high levels of corruption, and grinding poverty. In Egypt, tens of thousands of protesters have taken to the streets. Here’s a photo of one of the protests in Cairo, the capital (via Twitter):

http://promotingpeace.tumblr.com/post/2969260999

[dkf]

1. Holy cow. K&R

And why someone unrec'd this is beyond me. Started with 2 added one and still at 2. What's with that?

[nadinbrzezinski]

2. I got a group of "fans" and not in a good way

[nadinbrzezinski]

3. Kick