Protesters wave red cards to demand Morsi resignation
Jubilant men, women and children brandished red cards, blowing whistles and chanting "Leave Morsi".
CAIRO (AFP) - Thousands of demonstrators waved red cards in Tahrir Square Sunday to demand the resignation of Egypt s Islamist President Mohamed Morsi, as the spirit of 2011 s revolution returned to the iconic Cairo protest venue.
"The people want the ouster of the regime!" protesters chanted -- the signature slogan of the uprising that ousted Hosni Mubarak and brought Morsi to power.
Jubilant men, women and children brandished red cards, blowing whistles and vuvuzelas and chanting "Leave, Morsi!".
"This is the second revolution and Tahrir is the symbol of the revolution. The revolution will be launched from here," said Ibrahim Hammouda, a carpenter who had came from the northern city of Damietta to join the protests.
In 2011, when hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets to end Mubarak s authoritarian three-decade rule, they held up posters of regime figures with their faces crossed out.
This time, protesters are holding pictures of senior leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood, from which Morsi hails.
Morsi was elected a year ago in Egypt s first ever free vote. But today, his critics accuse him of betraying the revolution by concentrating power in the hands of Islamist groups.
They accuse him of breaking his promise to be a president "for all Egyptians" and letting the economy dive into free fall.
"I m here because Morsi, who I voted for, betrayed me and did not keep his promises. Egypt will be liberated again from Tahrir Square," said Mohammed Samir who travelled from the Nile Delta city of Mansura.
The Tahrir protest began hours before scheduled rallies and marches due to begin at 5:00 PM (1500 GMT), with several hundred people having spent the night in the square.
Street vendors sold flags and patriotic songs boomed from loudspeakers.
On the outskirts of the square, security checkpoints were manned by protesters in fluorescent vests under signs reading: "No entry to the Brotherhood".
"We are protecting the revolution from those who are against the revolution," said protester Essam Ahmed.
On the other side of Cairo, in the Nasr City neighbourhood, thousands of pro-Morsi supporters gathered to show support for the president.
They insist that ousting an elected president would be a coup against democracy that they will not allow.
Egypt is deeply divided between Morsi s mainly Islamist supporters and a broad-based opposition that also includes many deeply religious Muslims.
"Morsi, you hypocrite, you have split the people in two!" the protesters chanted in Tahrir.
On the other side of Cairo, thousands of the Islamist leader s backers gathered not far from the presidential palace in a show of support. Some wore homemade body armor and construction hats and carried shields and clubs precautions, they said, against possible violence.
There is a sense among opponents and supporters of Morsi that Sunday s rally is a make-or-break day, hiking worries that the two camps will come to blows despite vows by each to remain peaceful. Already at least seven people, including an American, have been killed in clashes the past week, mainly in Nile Delta cities and the coastal city of Alexandria.
The demonstrations on Sunday, the anniversary of Morsi s inauguration as Egypt s first freely elected leader, are the culmination of growing polarization since he took office.
In one camp are the president and his Islamist allies, including the Muslim Brotherhood and more hard-line groups. They have vowed to defend Morsi, saying street demonstrations cannot be allowed to remove a freely elected leader.
The other is an array of secular and liberal Egyptians as well as moderate Muslims and Christians and what the opposition says is a broad sector of the general public that has turned against the Islamists. They say the Islamists have overstepped their election mandate, accusing them of trying to monopolize power and woefully mismanaging the country.
The opposition believes that with sheer numbers in the street, it can pressure Morsi to step down perhaps with the added weight of the powerful military if it signals the president should go.
"Today, the people will triumph over fascism," prominent pro-democracy campaigner and bestselling novelist Alaa al-Aswany wrote on his Twitter account.
Underlining the potential for deadly violence, a flurry of police reports on Sunday spoke of the seizure of firearms, explosives and even artillery shells in various locations of the country, including Alexandria and the outskirts of Cairo.
