Thousands of Egyptians were still singing and waving flags in Cairo's Tahrir Square Feb. 13, two days after an 18-day uprising forced president Hosni Mubarak from power. The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces said the military will oversee a peaceful transition to "an elected civil authority to build a free democratic state." Headed by longtime Mubarak-loyalist Field Marshal Mohammed Hussein Tantawi, the Supreme Council issued a "Communique Number 4," read on state TV. It said Egypt would "remain committed to all its regional and international treaties," implicitly confirming the 1979 peace treaty with Israel will remain intact. A "Communique Number 5" said the military will "run the affairs of the country on a temporary basis for six months or until the end of parliamentary and presidential elections."

Several thousand Yemenis gathered in central Sana'a Feb. 12, calling for President Ali Abdallah Saleh to step down and follow the example of Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak. "After Mubarak, it's Ali's turn," chanted some of the estimated 4,000 protesters, mostly young students. Other favored chants included "Get out, Get out Ali" and "The people want the regime to fall!" Protesters briefly clashed with supporters of the ruling General People's Congress (GPC), thousands of whom occupied the city's central Tahrir Square to block anti-government demonstrators from gathering there. Many of the GPC followers were armed with clubs and knives. (Middle East Online, Feb. 12)

In a brief and somber surprise televised address Feb. 11, Vice President Omar Suleiman said: "My fellow citizens. In this difficult time that the country is going through, President Mohamed Hosni Mubarak has decided to relieve himself of his position as president and the supreme military council has taken control of the state's affairs. May God protect us." Crowds in Cairo's Tahrir Square erupted into loud cheers, chanting "Egypt is free, Egypt is free!" (ABC, AFP, Feb. 11)

Thousands of Egyptian protesters in Cairo's Tahrir Square erupted into chants of "Down with Mubarak!" and waved their shoes above their heads in disgust after President Hosni Mubarak's speech Feb. 10, which defied nearly universal expectations that he would accede to demands the he step down. Instead, he said he would stay on until September elections, while delegating most powers to Vice President Omar Suleiman. Protesters immediately spread out from Tahrir Square, surrounding the parliament building, council of ministers headquarters and other top government offices—all guarded by thick ranks of army troops and tanks. Facing off with the troops, they chant: "Egyptian army, the choice is now, the regime or the people!"

Hundreds of thousands of demonstrators flooded Cairo's iconic Tahrir Square and towns across Egypt Feb. 8, in the biggest show of defiance to President Hosni Mubarak since the protests began. The immense crowd hailed as a hero Google executive Wael Ghonim whose Facebook site helped launch the protest movement on Jan. 25, and who was released the previous day after having been detained and held blindfolded for 12 days. Many protesters carried the symbols of the Internet social networks Facebook and Twitter, which have been vital mobilizing tools for the opposition. While larger crowds gather daily to protest, several thousand occupy Tahrir Square around the clock, sleeping under plastic sheets or under army tanks. (AFP, BBC News, Feb. 8)

Egyptian security forces in Rafah, the Sinai peninsula town bordering the Gaza Strip, came under attack Feb. 7 by gunmen believed to be from the radical Islamist group Takfir Wal-Hijra. An officer and a civilian were injured in the two-hour clash, which began when militants fired rocket-propelled grenades at a military patrol. The Rmeilat Bedouin tribe reportedly joined with with the security forces to push back the militants.

Opponents of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak met with Vice President Omar Suleiman on Feb. 6, but rejected an offer to be included in political reform plans, and renewed their demands that Mubarak step down. That Suleiman agreed to sit down with the groups—which included the officially banned Muslim Brotherhood—was itself an historic concession, but the talks produced no breakthrough in the two-week-old standoff. Despite cold and wet weather, Cairo's Tahrir Square remains occupied by thousands of protesters, who spent the night sleeping on the ground in front of tanks to block the army from advancing on the square.

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak met with his new government Feb. 5, as the executive committee of his ruling party stepped down in a purge evidently aimed at appeasing protesters who have now been taking to streets for 12 consecutive days. Tahrir Square remains occupied by demonstrators, who rejected the cabinet and party changes as inadequate and continue to demand Mubarak's resignation.