Protests erupt for third day in various parts of Egypt (1st Lead)

Jan 27, 2011, 12:52 GMT

Cairo - Protests erupted throughout various parts of Egypt on Thursday in a third-day of anti-government demonstrations that have left at least six people dead.

Witnesses told the German Press Agency dpa that protesters blocked main roads in North Sinai near Sheikh Zuweid, a day after a protester was killed in clashes with riot police there.

Meanwhile, the al-Arabiya telvision channel reported that hundreds of protesters had clashed with police in the city of Ismailiya.

The April 6 Youth Movement, which has been one of the main organizers of the protests, used Twitter to spread the news that protests had flared up again in the northern cities of Tanta and Alexandria.

Security forces have arrested up to 1,000 people over the past two days while prosecutors have accused 40 protesters of attempting to overthrow the government by force.

Armoured vehicles and hundreds of riot police were out in force across central Cairo, where they have taken up positions since the nationwide protest erupted on Tuesday.

That protest was one of the largest since President Hosny Mubarak came to power nearly 30 years ago. The protesters have called for the dissolution of parliament, more democracy and higher wages, along with the ouster of Mubarak.

The protests, inspired by the recent demonstrations in Tunisia, also focused on high unemployment levels and Egypt's Emergency Laws, which ban protests without government permits and allow the government to make arrests without charge.

Egypt's protesters hope to emulate the Tunisian uprising that toppled Tunisia's Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, on January 14, after nearly 23 years in power.

More protests were planned for Friday after midday prayers, according to online activists.

Mohamed ElBaradei, the Egyptian former International Atomic Energy Agency chief who has voiced criticism of the government, was expected to return to Cairo on Thursday from his home in Vienna, ahead of Friday's planned protests.

Facebook, Twitter and other social network websites were accessible on at least one internet service after they were blocked by Egypt's main internet companies earlier this week. People had still been able to access these websites on their smartphones.

Meanwhile, trading on Egypt's stock market had resumed by mid- afternoon, hours after it was suspended following a plunge in the EGX 30 index within minutes of opening.

Egypt's Daily News reported that officials were talking with major institutional investors in a bid to shore up confidence, urging them not to panic and to re-invest in the market.

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