US Politics Special: A New EA Series on the Debates Over the Economy

Two political stories will dominate US news coverage this year: the campaign for the Republican nomination to face President Obama in the 2012 election, and the efforts by both parties, bi-partisan commissions, and independent think tanks to find a solution for the state of the American economy. Included in the latter debate will be terms that turn us all bleary-eyed; debt ceilings, discretionary and non-discretionary spending, entitlement reform, tax reform, and a myriad of health,care acronyms like MSAs (Medical Saving Accounts). The grim reality beyond the terms is that the United States is facing a fiscal crisis, and this year will see the beginnings of policies that will have long-standing consequences for the future of America.

Over the next few weeks EA USA will post a series of articles looking in-depth at the various recommendations for changes.

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Sudan LiveBlog: Developing Story --- Protests in Khartoum

0845 GMT: The Wall Street Journal has picked up on the Sunday protests, with an article by Sarah Childress.

0820 GMT: A statement from Sudanese police says its forces contained a “limited riot” staged by some students, including some “agitators". According to the police release, 40 students and 30 citizens were arrested, and all students were released on bail.

0755 GMT: Ahlia University in Omdurman has been closed for the rest of the week.

0500 GMT: Mohamed Abdelrahman, a student at Al-Ahlyaa University, was reportedly killed in the Khartoum demonstrations.

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Egypt Snap Analysis: Sorting Rumours --- Will the Army Fire? Has Interior Minister Been Arrested?

Two very different rumours that we are watching....

1. The Army has been ordered to fire on protesters tonight. 
2. Minister of Interior Habib el Adly, as well as key ruling party figure and tycoon Ahmed Ezz, have been arrested. El Adly exited the Ministry of Interior amidst live fire this morning.

We're watching the situation carefully, but here is one interpretation. The story about el Adly was broken by the US Government's channel Al Hurra. That is the first occasion during this crisis that Al Hurra has been out front with news, and no other outlet is carrying this.

There were stories yesterday of a serious split between the civilian leadership in the Government and the military over whether to use live fire. And today it is notable that some have said el Adly was the Minister preparing the order to shoot.

So one interpretation is that someone high up in the US Government, which has been calling on Cairo to avoid violence, or someone in the Egyptian system close to Washington put out the story that el Adly had been detained. The signal would be that the Obama Administration does not want, in any circumstances, the bloodshed of protesters.

This is just speculation, of course, but it is as reliable at this point as the "news" which is circulating.

Latest Egypt Video: Protests, Order, and Disorder

The Street Leading to the Ministry of Interior in Cairo

Sunday: Gathering at Tahrir Square in Cairo

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Tunisia Photo Essay: 5000 Rally on Saturday for Equality Between Men and Women

Thomas v. der Osten-Sacken and Bernd Baier, who debuted on EA on Saturday with a photo essay on Friday's protests and police raid in Tunis, follow up with a report and pictures from yesterday's march for gender equality:

In the first massive rally for equality of sexes since the toppling of President Ben Ali,  marchers called for a change of the Constitution.

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The Latest from Iran (30 January): Tough Poses, Tough Actions

0845 GMT: One to Watch. Today the Parliament will discuss President Ahmadinejad's open letter criticising the interference of the Majlis, the judiciary, and the Expediency Council with his plans.

0840 GMT: Diplomatic Breakthrough. The Parliament has approved the permanent appointment of Ali Akbar Salehi as Foreign Minister.

Salehi has been in the post since early December, when Manouchehr Mottaki was suddenly dismissed.

0835 GMT: And Another Pose. Hossein Sobhaninia of Parliament's National Security Council says a plan to end relations with Britain has been sent to the Majlis and will probably be discussed before consideration of the 2011 Budget.

Speaker of Parliament Ali Larijani was quoted in Iranian media on Saturday, “Iran is a powerful country and I believe some of the British politicians are confused about Iran and assume that they can exercise influence in Iran using their past methods.” However, Khabar Online, linked to Larijani, asserted that while the Speaker had received the opinions of different bodies, he believed it was up to Parliament to decide on cutting ties.

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Iran Snapshot: Tehran's Lesson for Egypt --- The Intimidation Can Never Stop

On a US-based website backing the Iranian Government --- in an item reinforcing Tehran's line that the uprising of Egypt's people as a victory for Iran's leadership in the Middle East --- a comment catches the eye:

A key difference between the current protests in Egypt and the post-election protests in Iran in 2009. In Egypt, the people have not had an opportunity to elect their leaders in a democratic election.

In Iran, they did.

Hmm.... My reaction may have been affected because I saw this after covering the news of the detention of Hossein Karroubi, the son of the prominent opposition figure Mehdi Karroubi, and dealing all day with the execution of the Dutch-Iranian national Zahra Bahrami. However, I think that there may be another explanation for the persistence of the Iranian regime beyond "free elections".

Our German Bureau points us to an explanation, given by the Supreme Leader to Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in a cartoon:

Mubarak: "How should I get out of this mess?"
Supreme Leader: "Nothing, give them their rights as we do."

Egypt (and Beyond) LiveBlog: Restoring Order?

0615 GMT: Here's the sign that we have moved from Sunday into Monday --- a Cairo observer reports, "Good morning. I could still hear chanting at 4AM. I could still hear chanting at 8AM. People are roaming Tahrir square now."

A BBC correspondent reports "small numbers" of police on the streets of Cairo.

0600 GMT: Laura Rozen of Politico gives some insight into how the US Administration is now doing crisis management on Egypt:

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Egypt Analysis: Who is Doing the Looting and Why?

The world wants stability. The police/thugs are destabilizing the country. Mubarak will use the Army to bring the stability back. Of course no one would remember how he slaughtered Egyptians and quelled a popular uprising because all of that does not matter when stability is concerned. Mubarak will imprison thousands and kill hundreds. Then you can say good-bye to another revolution in Egypt.

The question that will decide the fate of this uprising is: Will the protesters buy the narrative that they need protection from the ‘thugs’ and should go home and let the army deal with them or will they will see through the lies and keep asking for Mubarak’s departure?

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Tunisia Photo Essay: Demonstrations and a Police Raid

On Friday, amidst the events in Egypt, we noted another significant development in Tunis, quoting two journalists:

We witnessed this afternoon how police and plainclothes stormed the demonstrators' camp at Place de Kasbah with tear gas and dogs. Very ugly scenes.

Place de Kasbah since 1700 (1600 GMT) controlled by military, all tents and installations vandalised. Also clashes between demontsrators and police in Av. Bourguiba and centre of city. Lot of tear gas. Plainclothes with sticks all around as well as groups of enraged young demonstrators armed with stones and sticks. Atmosphere tense and unclear what is going to happen next.

The German journalists who helped us were Thomas v. der Osten-Sacken and Bernd Baier, who work for the Weekly Jungle World. Osten-Sacken subsequently sent us a series of shots which put the day in context....

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