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Mubarak Supporters Strike Back

(Washington Post) Will Englund and Leila Fadel - Whipped up by state television and spoiling for a fight, thousands of supporters of President Hosni Mubarak flooded into the center of Egypt's capital Wednesday, sparking violent clashes that shifted the momentum in the political confrontation. The president's supporters fueled the showdown with a charge by men riding camels and horses, wielding whips and clubs. Both sides then went at it with rocks, sticks and firebombs. Hospitals reported that three people had been killed and more than 600 injured in Wednesday's clashes. The violence came after the army had urged pro-democracy demonstrators to go home, saying Mubarak's pledge the previous night to hand over power this fall showed that their voices had been heard. Mubarak's opponents said Wednesday they would not back down from their quest to force him from office. But Mubarak loyalists seemed to be pushing back with new vigor. Omar Suleiman, the new vice president, said there would be no dialogue with the opposition until the protests stopped.
2011-02-03 08:35:14
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