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-The 2011 Egyptian revolution took place following a popular uprising that began on 25 January 2011. The uprising, in which the participants placed emphasis on the peaceful nature of the struggle, mainly comprised a campaign of civil resistance, which featured a series of demonstrations, marches, acts of civil disobedience, and labor strikes. Millions of protesters from a variety of socio-economic and religious backgrounds demanded the overthrow of the regime of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. Despite being predominantly peaceful in nature, the revolution was not without violent clashes between security forces and protesters. The campaign took place in Cairo, Alexandria, and in other cities in Egypt, following the Tunisian Revolution that saw the overthrow of the long time Tunisian president. On 11 February, following weeks of determined popular protest and pressure, Mubarak resigned from office. Grievances of Egyptian protesters focused on legal and political issues including police brutality, state of emergency laws, lack of free elections and freedom of speech, uncontrollable corruption, as well as economic issues including high unemployment, food price inflation, and low minimum wages. The primary demands from protest organizers are the end of the Hosni Mubarak regime, the end of emergency law, freedom, justice, a responsive non-military government, and a say in the management of Egypt's resources. Strikes by labor unions added to the pressure on government officials. There have been at least 384 deaths reported, and over 6,000 have been injured. The capital city of Cairo was described as "a war zone," and the port city of Suez has been the scene of frequent violent clashes. The government imposed a curfew that protesters defied and that the police and military did not enforce. The presence of Egypt's Central Security Forces police, loyal to Mubarak, was gradually replaced by largely restrained military troops. In the absence of police, there was looting by gangs that opposition sources said were instigated by plainclothes police officers. In response, civilians self-organised watch groups to protect neighbourhoods. International response to the protests was initially mixed,] though most have called for some sort of peaceful protests on both sides and moves toward reform. Mostly Western governments also expressed concern for the situation. Many governments issued travel advisories and began making attempts at evacuating their citizens from the country. The Egyptian Revolution, along with Tunisian events, has influenced demonstrations in other Arab countries including Yemen, Bahrain, Jordan and Libya. Mubarak dissolved his government and appointed military figure and former head of the Egyptian General Intelligence Directorate Omar Suleiman as Vice-President in an attempt to quell dissent. Mubarak asked aviation minister and former chief of Egypt's Air Force, Ahmed Shafik, to form a new government. Mohamed ElBaradei became a major figure of the opposition, with all major opposition groups supporting his role as a negotiator for some form of transitional unity government. In response to mounting pressure Mubarak announced he would not seek re-election in September. On 11 February, Vice President Omar Suleiman announced that Mubarak would be stepping down as president and turning power over to the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces. The junta, headed by effective head of state Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, announced on 13 February that the constitution would be suspended, both houses of parliament dissolved, and that the military would rule for six months until elections could be held. The prior cabinet, including Prime Minister Ahmed Shafik, would continue to serve as a caretaker government until a new one is formed. Shafik resigned on 3 March 2011, a day before major protests to get him to step down were planned; he was replaced by Essam Sharaf, the former transport minister.
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Women's role
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Egyptian women actively participated in virtually all roles during the revolution. They took part in the protests themselves, were present in news clips and on Facebook forums, and were part of the leadership during the Egyptian revolution. In Tahrir Square, women volunteers, some with their children, worked to support the protests. The remarkable overall peacefulness of the protesters, despite great provocations, was credited to the participation of a great many women and children. The demographic inclusiveness of the protesters in Tahrir Square was visible in the large number of women that participated. Many wore head scarves and other signs of religious conservatism, while others revelled in the freedom to kiss a friend or smoke a cigarette in public. Egyptian women also organized, strategized, and reported the events; Bloggers such as Leil Zahra Mortada took grave risks to keep the world informed daily of the scene in Tahrir Square and elsewhere. Among those who died was Sally Zahran, who was beaten to death during one of the demonstrations. In her honor NASA has authorised to name one of its spaceships to be sent to Mars. The wide participation and the significant contributions by Egyptian women to the protests have been attributed to the fact that many, especially younger women, are better educated than previous generations, representing for instance more than half of Egyptian university students. This has been an empowering factor for women, who have become more present and active publicly in recent years. The advent of social media has also helped provide tools for women to become protest leaders.
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The military's role
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The Egyptian Armed Forces enjoy a better reputation with the public than the police does, the former perceived as a professional body protecting the country, the latter accused of systemic corruption and illegitimate violence. All four Egyptian presidents since the 1950s have come from the military into power. Key Egyptian military personnel include the defense minister Mohamed Hussein Tantawi and General Sami Hafez Enan, chief of staff of the armed forces. The Egyptian military totals around 468,500 well-armed active personnel, plus a reserve of 479,000. As head of Egypt's Armed Forces, Tantawi has been described as "aged and change-resistant" and is attached to the old regime. He has used his position as Defense Minister to oppose reforms, economic and political, which he saw as weakening central government authority. Other key figures, Sami Enan chief among them, are younger and have closer connections to both the US and groups such as the Muslim Brotherhood. An important aspect of the relationship between the Egyptian and American military establishments is the 1.3 billion dollars in military aid provided to Egypt annually, which in turn pays for American-made military equipment, and allows Egyptian officers to receive training in the US. Guaranteed this aid package, the governing military council is for the most reform-resistant. One analyst however, while conceding that the military is change-resistant, states it has no option but to facilitate the process of democratization. Furthermore, the military will have to keep its role in politics limited to continue good relations with the West, and must not restrict the participation of political Islam if there is to be a genuine democracy.
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