Egyptians Celebrate Mubarak’s Ouster: Civil Disobedience Facing Scaf

On the 1st anniversary of toppling the former President Hosni Mubarak, Egyptians are set to mark the anniversary with a strike and day of civil disobedience.

As the action is intended to put pressure on the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces to hand over power to a civilian authority, Scaf accused what it called “plotters of trying to undermine the Egyptian state.”

The military rule warned that the conspiracy would “bring Egypt chaos and destruction.”

Scaf has promised to hand over power after presidential elections in June, but opposition groups have been calling for an immediate transfer of power.

“We are facing plots against the nation aiming to undermine the institutions of the Egyptian state, and to topple the state itself so that chaos reigns,” the message said.

The ruling generals – who have lost popularity since they took over last year – said they would not yield to threats, or bow to pressure to speed up the transition process.

The military took power under the leadership of Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi. Following a protracted election process, a new parliament dominated by Islamist parties held its first session earlier this month.

However, protests and unrest have continued, most recently with the deaths of 74 people after a football match in the city of Port Said and at least four others in ensuing demonstrations.

Thousands of protesters demonstrated outside the ministry of defense on Friday, calling for a swifter transition to civilian rule.

Students from Egypt’s main universities were to begin protests and others were expected to head to the iconic Tahrir Square — the epicenter of the protests that toppled Mubarak.

In a joint statement Friday, the groups urged Egyptians “to support these strikes in order to end the unjust rule and build a nation in which justice, freedom and dignity prevail.”