Kissinger Bombshell: Egypt, Tunisia, Jordan targeted to stop food-independence

[sharpsteve]

CNN reporting.

Also

Issandr El-Amrani reports that the internet has been shut down in Egypt as of 1 in the morning before the big demo. And not long after a horrifying AP video went up of a man being shot, and of shotgun shells in the streets
http://mondoweiss.net/2011/01/egypt-shuts-down-the-internet-on-eve-of-protest-as-the-world-community-gathers.html

UPDATE 11, Thursday 6:15 p.m. EST: Arabist just posted a claim that Egypt has "shut off the internet" entirely. I don't know how seriously to take this, but Arabist is a generally reliable site and a full shutdown is something that is theoretically possible. Arabist also notes the alleged shutdown happened "just after AP TV posted a video of a man being shot." If the shutdown is real, it's a huge sign that the regime is very, very worried about the protests scheduled for tomorrow (well, today Egyptian time). In less urgent news, The Awl has posted a great excerpt from Egyptian blogger and activist Hossam el-Hamalawy's interview with Al Jazeera. "We don't expect any help from America," el-Hamalawy says, "just to leave us alone."
http://motherjones.com/mojo/2011/01/whats-happening-egypt-explained

[citizenx]

BUMPUS MAXIMUS

[Freeski]

This sounds like a testbed for something bigger. Very ominous indeed. I mean, if you were the overlords, why wouldn't you shut down the best method of mass communication before the big show? Hopefully there are enough resourceful people to overcome this disgusting show of totalitarianism.

-----------

All Internet Access Severed in Egypt as Crackdown Grows
First Social Media, Then Text Messaging, Now Egyptians Report Whole Internet Down
by Jason Ditz, January 27, 2011
http://news.antiwar.com/2011/01/27/all-internet-access-severed-in-egypt-as-crackdown-grows/

Early today access to Social Media outlets, including Facebook and Twitter, were reportedly cut off in Egypt. Not long after reports emerged of the SMS text messaging service for cell phones being blocked. Now though, several outlets are reporting that the entire Internet is down for Egyptians, an apparent effort by President Hosni Mubarak to make coordination amongst the protesters more difficult ahead of massive rallies expected on Friday.

Egypt unrest rages; web shut ahead of big protest
Thu Jan 27, 2011 11:53pm EST
By Yasmine Saleh and Sherine El Madany
http://ca.reuters.com/article/topNews/idCATRE70O3UW20110128

CAIRO (Reuters) - Egyptian demonstrators fought security forces into the early hours of Friday in the city of Suez, and the Internet was blocked ahead of the biggest protests yet planned against President Hosni Mubarak's 30-year rule.

Egypt blocks Internet, deploys special force ahead of mass rallies
Update at 7:35 p.m. ET:
http://content.usatoday.com/communities/ondeadline/post/2011/01/egyptian-protesters-burn-police-post-in-suez--in-third-day-of-demonstrations/1

Egypt's government has disrupted Internet service and deployed an elite special operations counterterrorism force head of mass anti-government rallies Friday, The Associated Press is reporting. An Italian-based major service provider for Egypt reported early Friday that no Internet traffic was going into or out of the country after 12:30 a.m. local time (5:30 p.m. today ET). On Deadline was blocked from many Egyptian news sites while compiling its previous update.

[citizenx]

RE. implications for the U.S. and the world see:

Are the CIA/MI6/William Lynn III/George Soros backstabing Operation Payback?

http://forum.prisonplanet.com/index.php?topic=199652

A quick play-by-play:

U.S. Feds crack down on Anonymous for attacks to avenge Soros puppet Assange,  subsequently provocateurs (Anonymous) attack gov't. websites in Egypt to "support" CIA "Jasmine" revolution there,  PJ Watson -- "Are riots coming to America next?",  Answer: Yes (see Puerto Rico today),  Egypt rounds up Muslim Brotherhood leaders(CIA/MI5 provocateurs) provoking yet more violence and chaos, meanwhile NY Times front-page headline is about U.S. cables leaked by wikileaks showing how the U.S. placated the puppet Mubarak dictatorship under Obama and Clinton.

But, I'm sure none of this stuff is connected.

Whew!  I had to stop to take a breath.

Oh, yeah. Then there's this:

January 24, 2011 10:12 AM
Renewed Push to GiveObama an Internet "Kill Switch"

 Posted by Declan McCullagh

A controversial bill handing President Obama power over privately owned computer systems during a "national cyberemergency," and prohibiting any review by the court system, will return this year.

Internet companies should not be alarmed by the legislation, first introduced last summer by Sens. Joseph Lieberman (I-Conn.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine), a Senate aide said last week. Lieberman, an independent who caucuses with Democrats, is chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.

"We're not trying to mandate any requirements for the entire Internet, the entire Internet backbone," said Brandon Milhorn, Republican staff director and counsel for the committee.

continued:

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-501465_162-20029302-501465.html
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

But, I'm sure that last thing is nothing.

Definitley not connected.

What was I thinking?

[Freeski]

I wonder if they know what they're actually fighting for?

Mid-East: Will there be a domino effect?

In the wake of the ousting of Tunisia's President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali, observers have drawn parallels with other countries in the region. There is speculation about a possible domino effect similar to the collapse of Communist governments around Eastern Europe in 1989. In several countries of the Middle East and North Africa, youthful and rapidly growing populations face rising food prices, high unemployment and lack of political representation. Some are also ruled by aging autocrats facing succession issues.

Which are the countries involved, and what is the likelihood of real change?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12204971

[UKStewart82]

http://www.renesys.com/blog/2011/01/egypt-leaves-the-internet.shtml

Update (3:06 UTC)

One of the very few exceptions to this block has been Noor Group (AS20928), which still has 83 out of 83 live routes to its Egyptian customers, with inbound transit from Telecom Italia as usual. Why was Noor Group apparently unaffected by the countrywide takedown order? Unknown at this point, but we observe that the Egyptian Stock Exchange (www.egyptse.com) is still alive at a Noor address.

Its DNS A records indicate that it's normally reachable at 4 different IP addresses, only one of which belongs to Noor. Internet transit path diversity is a sign of good planning by the Stock Exchange IT staff, and it appears to have paid off in this case. Did the Egyptian government leave Noor standing so that the markets could open next week?

[Freeski]

Are We Witnessing the Start of a Global Revolution?
North Africa and the Global Political Awakening, Part 1
by Andrew Gavin Marshall
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22963

We have now reached the point where the global economic crisis has continued beyond the two-year mark. The social repercussions are starting to be felt – globally – as a result of the crisis and the coordinated responses to it. Since the global economic crisis hit the ‘Third World’ the hardest, the social and political ramifications will be felt there first. In the context of the current record-breaking hikes in the cost of food, food riots will spread around the world as they did in 2007 and 2008, just prior to the outbreak of the economic crisis. This time, however, things are much worse economically, much more desperate socially, and much more oppressive politically.

-----

For the first time in human history almost all of humanity is politically activated, politically conscious and politically interactive... The resulting global political activism is generating a surge in the quest for personal dignity, cultural respect and economic opportunity in a world painfully scarred by memories of centuries-long alien colonial or imperial domination... The worldwide yearning for human dignity is the central challenge inherent in the phenomenon of global political awakening... That awakening is socially massive and politically radicalizing... The nearly universal access to radio, television and increasingly the Internet is creating a community of shared perceptions and envy that can be galvanized and channeled by demagogic political or religious passions. These energies transcend sovereign borders and pose a challenge both to existing states as well as to the existing global hierarchy, on top of which America still perches...

The youth of the Third World are particularly restless and resentful. The demographic revolution they embody is thus a political time-bomb, as well... Their potential revolutionary spearhead is likely to emerge from among the scores of millions of students concentrated in the often intellectually dubious "tertiary level" educational institutions of developing countries. Depending on the definition of the tertiary educational level, there are currently worldwide between 80 and 130 million "college" students. Typically originating from the socially insecure lower middle class and inflamed by a sense of social outrage, these millions of students are revolutionaries-in-waiting, already semi-mobilized in large congregations, connected by the Internet and pre-positioned for a replay on a larger scale of what transpired years earlier in Mexico City or in Tiananmen Square. Their physical energy and emotional frustration is just waiting to be triggered by a cause, or a faith, or a hatred...

[The] major world powers, new and old, also face a novel reality: while the lethality of their military might is greater than ever, their capacity to impose control over the politically awakened masses of the world is at a historic low. To put it bluntly: in earlier times, it was easier to control one million people than to physically kill one million people; today, it is infinitely easier to kill one million people than to control one million people.[1]

- Zbigniew Brzezinski, Former U.S. National Security Advisor, Co-Founder of the Trilateral Commission, Member, Board of Trustees, Center for Strategic and International Studies

[Freeski]

Just think about how serious this is!

Associated Press
The day part of the Internet died: Egypt goes dark
By JORDAN ROBERTSON , 01.28.11, 01:22 AM EST
http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2011/01/28/technology-broadcasting-amp-entertainment-us-egypt-protest-internet-outage_8279764.html

SAN FRANCISCO -- About a half-hour past midnight Friday morning in Egypt, the Internet went dead.

Almost simultaneously, the handful of companies that pipe the Internet into and out of Egypt went dark as protesters were gearing up for a fresh round of demonstrations calling for the end of President Hosni Mubarak's nearly 30-year rule, experts said.

Egypt has apparently done what many technologists thought was unthinkable for any country with a major Internet economy: It unplugged itself entirely from the Internet to try and silence dissent.

Experts say it's unlikely that what's happened in Egypt could happen in the United States because the U.S. has numerous Internet providers and ways of connecting to the Internet. Coordinating a simultaneous shutdown would be a massive undertaking.

[citizenx]

Ironically, I do think this is both a danger (a product of manipulations) and a great opportunity (as most crises are).

This could be a moment when the PTB in the process of playing their hand are risking that people might indeed open the door to real change -- in the Middle East and the West.

It's all in how you look at it.

Brezinski knows this.  He knows how closely they have to play their cards at this point because of it.  On that, he is right.

One false move and...

it all comes tumbling down.

[Freeski]

Ironically, I do think this is both a danger (a product of manipulations) and a great opportunity (as most crises are).

This could be a moment when the PTB in the process of playing their hand are risking that people might indeed open the door to real change -- in the Middle East and the West.

It's all in how you look at it.

Brezinski knows this.  He knows how closely they have to play their cards at this point because of it.  On that, he is right.

One false move and...

it all comes tumbling down.

It could be a lot of things for sure. but what seems consistent among the global protests and the raids is a fear of losing control. At this point, who really cares what any group is pissed off about? As long as the rage is directed at the overlords, it has to be a good thing. Step one is to kill the apathy and have people pay attention - like Brzezinski said in Montreal -- for the first time ever people are becoming politically aware... but the Egypt kill-switch is a very ominous sign.

[citizenx]

True dat, but sometimes you have to give u something to get something.

What would some of those empty headed drones back home do without their precious Facebook and Twitter?

Maybe they really would be ready to really do something.

Take away their Starbucks as well and, by God, maybe you have the start of a real revolution.

Take away their cable and direct TV and they'll set the whole G-D world on fire.

[shipgeek]

Thank you all for the links and info.

I wonder how Israel sees this. Could the whole thing be organized from there?

Also... The revolt in Egypt is happening at the same time as the Davos World Economic Forum where the planet's big wigs are making their big plans. Is this a coincidence?

[lamourlady]

Well, this ain't Egypt and Obama better have a dang good reason to 'hit the switch' over here in North America or there will be hell to pay!  
If nothing else THAT will mos def wake up the masses!!! I cringe to think what is up the sleeves of the elite to even fathom such a thing right now.  It's that or just a psyop to instill the fear factor again and to hold the people hostage..."Do as I say or I will take away your precious internet!"

Blackmail seems to be what this world runs on these days, however discreet it may be.

[citizenx]

They might be doing folks a favor in the grand scheme of things.  But I'm not sure they are really about to reach for that doomsday switch just yet.  It is a two-edged sword.

It is also the kill switch for the Dow Jones (I'm not saying they might not throw it anyway under the right circumstances.)

[shipgeek]

Any links to Middle-East TV stations broadcasting live on the Internet in English language?

Al Jazeera? Others?

 

[lamourlady]

They might be doing folks a favor in the grand scheme of things.  But I'm not sure they are really about to reach for that doomsday switch just yet.  It is a two-edged sword.

It is also the kill switch for the Dow Jones (I'm not saying they might not throw it anyway under the right circumstances.)

No doubt, Citizen.  Picture it:  The internet goes blank...this reminiscent of something I feel I've seen somewhere, where shots of people actually getting up out of their chairs, looking around, going outside...rubbing their eyes and all at once awaken in their minds that they've been asleep for a very long time.  Pan to millions marching on Washington and it begins...

Like you say...it could be a favor.  The end of that scenario could either be the beginning of a hopeful future or the beginning of the end...


*end over dramatic movie in my mind*  lol   

[citizenx]

It's a crap-shot for the PTB.  That's for sure.

Keeping it up, keeps a channel for propaganda and disinfo open for them.  They prefer controlling the system that way, except in desperate circumstances --like Mubarak's.

Birth certificate?

Wag the dog?

[shipgeek]

It's a crap-shot for the PTB.  That's for sure.

Keeping it up, keeps a channel for propaganda and disinfo open for them.  They prefer controlling the system that way, except in desperate circumstances --like Mubarak's.

Birth certificate?

Wag the dog?

This birth certificate issue is US-centric.

People are getting shot dead on the streets in Cairo fighting for freedom.

Look here.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OoKQLr439Ww&feature=player_embedded

I doubt we will see the same riots in the US not Germany or France either.
The sheep are too used to their little comfort, debt and boring lives. They are too afraid to lose it.

[citizenx]

Security forces disappear off Cairo streets

CAIRO – Egyptian security forces have all but disappeared from the streets in the heart of the country's capital ahead of planned demonstrations against President Hosni Mubarak's rule.

Egyptians had expected a huge police presence ahead of Friday's planned protests.

Instead, there is no sight of riot police on Cairo's main streets and key bridges, including areas where security forces are visible even in normal times.

continued:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110128/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_egypt_protest;_ylt=An31Hy1AtvWDLOYtPmISWJ1H2ocA;_ylu=X3oDMTNtN3E1MnVqBGFzc2V0Ay9zL2FwLzIwMTEwMTI4L2FwX29uX3JlX21pX2VhL21sX2VneXB0X3Byb3Rlc3QEY2NvZGUDbXBfZWNfOF8xMARjcG9zAzEEcG9zAzEEc2VjA3luX3RvcF9zdG9yaWVzBHNsawNzZWN1cml0eWZvcmM-

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

this is either really good or really bad

[Brocke]

Now I'm not saying it's a conspiracy but...now we are being introduced to the idea that if we don't "behave" we will be unplugged.


Censoring some sites is one thing, but how has Egypt unplugged the internet entirely?

    * By Jordan Robertson
    * From: AP
    * January 28, 2011 7:11PM


EGYPT has apparently done what many technologists thought was unthinkable for any country with a major internet economy: It unplugged itself entirely.

Almost simultaneously, the handful of companies that pipe the internet into and out of Egypt went dark as protesters were gearing up for a fresh round of demonstrations calling for the end of President Hosni Mubarak's nearly 30-year rule, experts said.

So, could it happen elsewhere?

The idea of a single "kill switch" to turn the internet on and off has seduced some US lawmakers, who have pushed for the power to shutter the internet in a national emergency.

The internet blackout in Egypt shows that a country with strong control over its internet providers apparently can force all of them to pull their plugs at once.

Jim Cowie, the chief technology officer and a co-founder of Renesys, a US network security firm that studies internet disruptions, says it's "almost entirely unprecedented in internet history".

Read more: http://www.news.com.au/technology/censoring-some-sites-is-one-thing-but-how-has-egypt-unplugged-the-internet-entirely/story-e6frfro0-1225996353223#ixzz1CJscnzAp


Remember this in 2008...

Undersea cables snap in Egypt, Internet slows down

CNN-IBN
Posted on Jan 31, 2008 at 04:28pm IST


Video
http://ibnlive.in.com/news/undersea-cables-snap-in-egypt-internet-slows-down/57812-11.html

New Delhi: If you are facing problems with your broadband Internet connection, that's because several undersea cables have snapped in Alexandria, Egypt.

Snapping of undesea cables through the Mediterranean has affected communication links and slowed down Internet services across continents. In India too, users faced problems after the cables snapped.

The cable network belonging to the Flag Telecom and SMW-4 project are the ones badly affected.

Snapping of undesea cables through the Mediterranean has affected communication links and slowed down Internet services across continents. In India too, users faced problems after the cables snapped.
The cable network belonging to the Flag Telecom and SMW-4 project are the ones badly affected.

SMW-4 is a submarine cable system linking South East Asia to Europe via the Indian Sub-Continent and Middle East.

Indian telecom operators Bharti and VSNL own stakes in SMW-4. While restoration work at Reliance owned Flag telecom is on, the traffic has been routed through alternate bandwidth sources, slowing down connectivity.

http://ibnlive.in.com/news/undersea-cables-snap-in-egypt-internet-slows-down/57812-11.html

[Nailer]

at least they have the Balls to riot against their Tyrant governments .

American sheeple plop down in their chairs turn on their 50 inch TV and watch dancing with the stars, American Idol while devouring that McDeath burger or microwave dinner guzzling beer and denying the facts that their Bill of Rights are being slowly abolished.

No balls at all, they were cut off

The American People have been infected with a deadly Illness , it's called " PC Liberalism "

[Kilika]

Ironically, I do think this is both a danger (a product of manipulations) and a great opportunity (as most crises are).

This could be a moment when the PTB in the process of playing their hand are risking that people might indeed open the door to real change -- in the Middle East and the West.

It's all in how you look at it.

Brezinski knows this.  He knows how closely they have to play their cards at this point because of it.  On that, he is right.

One false move and...

it all comes tumbling down.

Of course Brezinski knows. And being ex-military, along with many of his cohorts, they all know the classic military tactic of cutting communications and supply lines. It's a siege tactic from way back. Simply encamp the enemy and wait it out till they either give up or starve to death. What Egypt did is expected of governments, as they are run by the military when things get "difficult".

[lamourlady]

So, wow, they literally unplugged the whole country from the internet.     I wasn't sure of the totality of the situation.

EGYPT has apparently done what many technologists thought was unthinkable for any country with a major internet economy: It unplugged itself entirely.

[shipgeek]

I have sent a message to an Egyptian friend in Cairo. Will see if I get any answer.

[sharpsteve]

Egyptian Revolution Jan 25th 2011 - Take what's Yours!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vo5Fn1-2E8o

Created by tshaaban88. Another Egyptian who's had enough.

Facebook Link:http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=10150092449954510

Violent clashes between police and demonstrators as over ten thousand gather on the streets of Cairo. The Egyptian population has endured a tyrants rule for far too long, millions struggle each day to find where their next meal is coming from. January 25th, 2011 marks the day when the people rise and take back what's rightfully there's. This isn't the end, but hopefully the beginning to a long awaited regime change! Send to everyone and let them know.

[iks83]

I say good!!! Gets the nerds and geeks to join the protests instead of sitting on their butts playing WoW all day.

[shipgeek]

Follow Live Twitter feeds from Egypt/Cairo.

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2011/01/201112523026521335.html

These seem to be old non-updated tweets. meh...

[Guns Equal Freedom]

I don't know, is this good, or bad? A 30 year old government with the same leadership being over thrown by the people, even though Egypt is very friendly to the United States and Israel?

[Guns Equal Freedom]

Follow Live Twitter feeds from Egypt/Cairo.

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2011/01/201112523026521335.html

This means there is not a total internet blackout.

The internet was design never to be completely turned off even if the government themselves who invented the internet try and turn it off too.

[Brocke]

It's looking very serious.  

adamakary
Adam from Alex: Ambulances all over city drowning out call for prayer... situation tense - protests expected after prayers...
#jan25 13 minutes ago

adamakary
adamakary https://bit.ly/eJ36dW Gettin reports that gov thugs in low income areas of Cairo/Alex dousing cars w/ gas to light when time is right
#jan25 about 1 hour ago

evanchill
The Egyptian government seems ready to cut phone communications for Friday, but seems unlikely they can block all Internet access.
#jan25 10 hours ago

[Brocke]

Egypt's Mubarak braced for "Friday of Wrath"

      Thu, Jan 27 2011

Credit: Reuters/Mohamed Abd El-Ghany
By Yasmine Saleh and Sherine El Madany

CAIRO | Fri Jan 28, 2011 5:18am EST

CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt mounted a security clampdown in Cairo and blocked internet sites and the mobile phone system in a face-off with thousands of protesters who promised a "Friday of Wrath" aimed at ending Hosni Mubarak's 30-year rule.

Emboldened by this month's revolt that toppled the leader of Tunisia, Egyptians have staged mass protests since Tuesday and web activists have called for Muslims and Christians to demonstrate after Friday prayers. Hundreds have been arrested.

Members of the Muslim Brotherhood, including at least eight senior officials of the opposition group and its main spokesmen, were rounded up overnight. A security source said authorities had ordered a crackdown on the group.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/01/28/us-egypt-protest-idUSTRE70O3UW20110128

[iks83]

with the blood of patriots and tyrants.... its sad that it always has to come to that and it is easy to get a population to go violent with a few provocateurs.

[Brocke]

Renesys Blog - http://www.renesys.com/blog/

Egypt Leaves the Internet
By James Cowie on January 27, 2011 7:56 PM | 70 Comments | 5 TrackBacks

Confirming what a few have reported this evening: in an action unprecedented in Internet history, the Egyptian government appears to have ordered service providers to shut down all international connections to the Internet. Critical European-Asian fiber-optic routes through Egypt appear to be unaffected for now. But every Egyptian provider, every business, bank, Internet cafe, website, school, embassy, and government office that relied on the big four Egyptian ISPs for their Internet connectivity is now cut off from the rest of the world. Link Egypt, Vodafone/Raya, Telecom Egypt, Etisalat Misr, and all their customers and partners are, for the moment, off the air.
egypt_outages.png

At 22:34 UTC (00:34am local time), Renesys observed the virtually simultaneous withdrawal of all routes to Egyptian networks in the Internet's global routing table. Approximately 3,500 individual BGP routes were withdrawn, leaving no valid paths by which the rest of the world could continue to exchange Internet traffic with Egypt's service providers. Virtually all of Egypt's Internet addresses are now unreachable, worldwide.

This is a completely different situation from the modest Internet manipulation that took place in Tunisia, where specific routes were blocked, or Iran, where the Internet stayed up in a rate-limited form designed to make Internet connectivity painfully slow. The Egyptian government's actions tonight have essentially wiped their country from the global map.

What happens when you disconnect a modern economy and 80,000,000 people from the Internet? What will happen tomorrow, on the streets and in the credit markets? This has never happened before, and the unknowns are piling up. We will continue to dig into the event, and will update this story as we learn more. As Friday dawns in Cairo under this unprecedented communications blackout, keep the Egyptian people in your thoughts.

[...]

Update (3:06 UTC)

One of the very few exceptions to this block has been Noor Group (AS20928), which still has 83 out of 83 live routes to its Egyptian customers, with inbound transit from Telecom Italia as usual. Why was Noor Group apparently unaffected by the countrywide takedown order? Unknown at this point, but we observe that the Egyptian Stock Exchange (www.egyptse.com) is still alive at a Noor address.

[Brocke]

EGX 100 INDEX (EGX100:IND)

884.79
   
Change    -144.250 (-14.018%)
Open              1,029.04
High              1,029.02
Low                 875.52

[citizenx]

Not sure El Baradei will end up on top in 11'.

My money is still on Omar Suleiman, but I cannot say why.

[Brocke]

http://wikileaks.ch/cable/2010/01/10CAIRO64.html

VZCZCXRO5513
RR RUEHROV
DE RUEHEG #0064/01 0120925
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 120925Z JAN 10
FM AMEMBASSY CAIRO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 4717
INFO RUEHXK/ARAB ISRAELI COLLECTIVE
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 CAIRO 000064
 
SIPDIS
 
DRL FOR A/S POSNER
FOR NEA/ELA AND DRL/NESCA
 
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PTER KDEM KIRF ELAB EG
SUBJECT: EGYPT'S EMERGENCY LAW AND ITS BROAD USES
 
¶1. KEY POINTS
 
-- Egypt's State of Emergency, in effect almost continuously
since 1967, allows for the application of the 1958 Emergency
Law, which grants the GOE broad powers to arrest individuals
without charge and to detain them indefinitely.
 
-- The Emergency Law creates state security courts, which
issue verdicts that cannot be appealed, and can only be
modified by the president.
 
-- The Emergency Law allows the president broad powers to
"place restrictions" on freedom of assembly.  Separately, the
penal code criminalizes the assembly of 5 or more people in a
gathering that could "threaten public order."
 
-- Over the past two decades, the vast majority of cases
where the government has used the Emergency Law have been to
target violent Islamist extremist groups such as the Islamic
Group and Al-Jihad, and political activity by the Muslim
Brotherhood.  However, the GOE has also used the Emergency
Law in some recent cases to target bloggers and labor
demonstrators.
 
--------------------------------------
Broad Powers Granted to the Government
--------------------------------------
 
¶2. Since the 1967 Arab-Israeli war, Egypt has almost
continuously been under a State of Emergency.  The State of
Emergency allows for the application of the Emergency Law of
1958, which grants the government broad powers to restrict
civil liberties by acting outside the civil and criminal
codes.  Article 3 of the Emergency Law allows the president
to order "placing restrictions on personal freedom of
assembly, movement, residence, traffic in specific areas at
specific times," and "the arrest of suspects or individuals
threatening public security and order," and arrests and
searches without implementation of the law of criminal
procedures..."  In practice, the Interior Ministry carries
out "the order" of the President either orally or in writing.
 Article 3 also authorizes surveillance of personal messages
and confiscation of publications.
 
---------------------------------
Detention Under the Emergency Law
---------------------------------
 
¶3. Article 3 of the law stipulates that detainees can appeal
an arrest order after six months in a state security court,
and that the court's decision is subject to approval by the
president.  In practice, after 30 days in prison,detainees
can demand court hearings to challenge detention orders.
Detainees can re-submit demands for hearings every 30 days;
however, a judge can uphold a detention order indefinitely.
The Emergency Law does not mandate a maximum detention
period, and therefore allows the government, subject to the
approval of a State Security court and the president, to
detain individuals indefinitely without charge.
 
--------------------------------
The Emergency Law's Court System
--------------------------------
 
¶4. Article 7 of the law creates state security courts.  Three
civilian judges preside over the courts, two of whom may be
replaced by military judges appointed by the president.  The
law also establishes state security prosecutors who review
cases and refer them to the state security courts.  Per
article 7, judges' verdicts in state security courts are
final; there is no appeal process.  Article 6 also stipulates
that all state security court verdicts are subject to the
review of the president, and Article 14 allows the president
to modify sentences handed down by state security court
judges.
 
--------------------------------------------- ------
Assembly under the Emergency Law and the Penal Code
--------------------------------------------- ------
 
¶5. Per para 2, the Emergency Law gives the president power to
place "restrictions on personal freedom of assembly."
Separately, in the penal code, law 10 of 1914 criminalizes
the "assembly of five or more people in a gathering that
could threaten public order or security."  The law of
meetings and demonstrations, law 14 of 1923 requires citizens
to notify police prior to holding a gathering, and allows
police to prevent a gathering from taking place and to
dissolve a gathering once it is convened.
 
CAIRO 00000064  002 OF 002
 
 
 
---------------------------------------
Terrorism Cases under The Emergency Law
---------------------------------------
 
¶6. During the 1990's when Islamist terror organizations such
as The Islamic Group and Al-Jihad carried out a series of
attacks, the government arrested and detained thousands of
Islamists under the Emergency Law.  Contacts estimate that
about 4,000 to 5,000 of these detainees remain in prison.
Under the Emergency Law, security forces detained groups of
Bedouin in the Sinai in connection with investigations into
terror attacks there in 2004, 2005 and in April 2006.
 
¶7. In late 2008, the government used the Emergency Law to
arrest 26 members of a Hizballah cell, 18 of whom are
Egyptian.  The cell was allegedly working to target U.S. and
Israeli ships transiting the Suez Canal.  The case is now
before a state security court.  In July 2009, the government
used the Emergency Law to arrest and detain a group of 25
Egyptians and one Palestinian.  The group allegedly aided
Hamas, assisted in the February 2009 bombing at the Khan
Al-Khalili market in Cairo, and robbed a Cairo jewelry store
owned by Copts.  According to press reports, on January 4 a
state security prosecutor transferred the case to a state
security emergency court.
 
--------------------------------------------
Emergency Law Cases Not Related to Terrorism
--------------------------------------------
 
¶8. The government has also used the Emergency Law in cases
not related to terrorism.  The GOE jailed blogger Hany Nazir
under the Emergency Law in October 2008 following posts
deemed offensive to Christianity and Islam.  The GOE has also
imprisoned activist and blogger Musad Abu Fagr since December
2007 under the Emergency Law following posts about
difficulties faced by Sinai Bedouin.  In 2008, the government
arrested a blogger from the heterodox Islamic Quranic sect
under the Emergency Law, and detained him for approximately
90 days.
 
¶9. In recent years, the government has used the Emergency Law
to arrest large numbers of Muslim Brotherhood (MB) members
without charge in the run-up to the 2005 parliamentary
elections, the 2008 local council elections and the 2010
parliamentary elections.  The government released most of the
detainees after holding them from periods ranging from a few
days to several months.
 
¶10. The government used the Emergency Law to arrest and
prosecute 49 individuals in connection to clashes that broke
out between workers and police during an April 2008 labor
strike in the Delta town of Mahalla.  In December 2008, a
state security court convicted 22 people on charges of
assaulting police officers, robbery, and possession of
unlicensed weapons. In 2004, a state security court convicted
26 men linked to the banned Islamic Liberation Party for
belonging to a banned organization.  Several defendants
alleged the government tortured them to obtain confessions.
SCOBEY

[mr anderson]

I don't know, is this good, or bad? A 30 year old government with the same leadership being over thrown by the people, even though Egypt is very friendly to the United States and Israel?

This video will answer your question...

I perked up when they mentioned the region, the players, the prize.

CNN: Egypt in Revolt
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bs2CI9_Iba4

[shipgeek]

Fresh protests erupt in Egypt

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2011/01/201112810059478272.html

For those who read/understand arabic

http://aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/E2C81082-A981-4710-B717-75F3BDE1D0BB.htm

[Brocke]

You say you want a revolution, but be careful what you wish for
http://rt.com/news/color-revolution-sophisticated-technology/

William Engdahl on RT

[lamourlady]

Renesys Blog - http://www.renesys.com/blog/

Egypt Leaves the Internet
By James Cowie on January 27, 2011 7:56 PM | 70 Comments | 5 TrackBacks

Confirming what a few have reported this evening: in an action unprecedented in Internet history, the Egyptian government appears to have ordered service providers to shut down all international connections to the Internet. Critical European-Asian fiber-optic routes through Egypt appear to be unaffected for now. But every Egyptian provider, every business, bank, Internet cafe, website, school, embassy, and government office that relied on the big four Egyptian ISPs for their Internet connectivity is now cut off from the rest of the world. Link Egypt, Vodafone/Raya, Telecom Egypt, Etisalat Misr, and all their customers and partners are, for the moment, off the air.
egypt_outages.png

At 22:34 UTC (00:34am local time), Renesys observed the virtually simultaneous withdrawal of all routes to Egyptian networks in the Internet's global routing table. Approximately 3,500 individual BGP routes were withdrawn, leaving no valid paths by which the rest of the world could continue to exchange Internet traffic with Egypt's service providers. Virtually all of Egypt's Internet addresses are now unreachable, worldwide.

This is a completely different situation from the modest Internet manipulation that took place in Tunisia, where specific routes were blocked, or Iran, where the Internet stayed up in a rate-limited form designed to make Internet connectivity painfully slow. The Egyptian government's actions tonight have essentially wiped their country from the global map.

What happens when you disconnect a modern economy and 80,000,000 people from the Internet? What will happen tomorrow, on the streets and in the credit markets? This has never happened before, and the unknowns are piling up. We will continue to dig into the event, and will update this story as we learn more. As Friday dawns in Cairo under this unprecedented communications blackout, keep the Egyptian people in your thoughts.

[...]

Update (3:06 UTC)

One of the very few exceptions to this block has been Noor Group (AS20928), which still has 83 out of 83 live routes to its Egyptian customers, with inbound transit from Telecom Italia as usual. Why was Noor Group apparently unaffected by the countrywide takedown order? Unknown at this point, but we observe that the Egyptian Stock Exchange (www.egyptse.com) is still alive at a Noor address.

You know what is ironic about this whole thing is that we know the elite are not behind this.  Oh, they had their grubby little paws in there before it began and will eventually get their grubby little paws into it again, but not until these people have their way.  I am seriously on edge to see what happens.  This will change the landscape of everything to come.

Hmmm, maybe I stand corrected.

“If you look more closely, you look at the so-called people who are leading this, are being coached. And they're being coached by the US Intelligence Services, the same way the Orange Revolution was in Ukraine or the Rose Revolution with Saakashvili in Georgia,” revealed author and researcher William Enghdal.

Per Brocke's link from the other thread.

http://rt.com/news/color-revolution-sophisticated-technology/