Fri Jan 28, 2011 7:27PM
Riot police clash with protestors on the Kasr Al Nile Bridge, Cairo, on January 28, 2011.
A political analyst says the US call on the Egyptian authorities to heed demands for reforms is a charade, as Washington will continue to support President Hosni Mubarak.
In an apparent change of tone, the Obama administration on Friday expressed its deep concerns about the use of violence by Egyptian police and security forces against protesters and urged Egyptian authorities to respect citizens’ rights.
“Events unfolding in Egypt are of deep concern. Fundamental rights must be respected, violence avoided and open communications allowed,” State Department spokesman PJ Crowley tweeted.
Crowley’s remarks, however, contradicts Washington’s earlier stance on Egypt’s protests which were accompanied by mild expressions of support for Mubarak.
“Mubarak has been an ally of ours in a number of things. And he’s been very responsible on, relative to geopolitical interest in the region, the Middle East peace efforts; the actions Egypt has taken relative to normalizing relationship with-with Israel. …I would not refer to him as a dictator,” US Vice President Joe Biden said on Thursday.
Some political analysts, however, believe that there is no change in the US stance toward Egypt and that Washington still fully supports Mubarak’s regime.
“There is no ambiguity about what [the US] stance is. The Egyptian military and police are completely supported and backed by the US and by the Central Intelligence Agency,” the author of The Hidden History of Zionism Ralph Schoenman told Press TV in an interview.
“It’s a country selling regime that does the bidding of US and Israeli policy in the region at the expense of the very livelihood and survival of its own people,” he added.
On Friday, tens of thousands of protesters across the country turned out after Friday prayers and clashed with police.
In response to the mass protests, Egyptian authorities shut down Internet and cell services in the country and imposed curfew in major cities.
So far, at least 14 people have been killed and dozens of others have been injured since the protests against unemployment, corruption and rising prices began four days ago.
Up to 1,000 people have been arrested during the protests.