Mid-East: Will there be a domino effect? – WBNews

The Arab world has been transfixed by the recent dramatic events in Egypt and Tunisia. Popular street protests have swept across Egypt just days after similar protests saw Tunisia’s President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali flee his country. Could a domino effect sweep more leaders from power as it did around Eastern Europe in 1989? Egypt Rocked by more than a week of protests, Egypt’s reputation for strength and stability has been swept away. Open defiance of the authorities and calls for President Hosni Mubarak to stand down forced a pledge from him to step aside at elections due later this year. However, he has resisted calls for him to go now and while the protests have continued, it is not clear who will prevail. Egypt: Key facts Head of state: President Hosni Mubarak, 82 In power: since 1981 Population: 84.5m Image caption Protesters are demanding the president steps down As in Tunisia, Egyptians face tough economic conditions, official corruption and little opportunity to express their dissatisfaction with the political system. On 25 January, protesters called for a day of a “day of revolt” that drew thousands to central Cairo and other cities across Egypt in numbers not seen since the bread riots of the 1970s. The police response, using water cannon and rubber bullets, backfired. In the days of violent clashes that followed, some 300 people have died and hundreds more injured. Many analysts say the strength of the protests means that real change in Egypt is now inevitable, but…more detail