As tens of thousands of men,women and children poured into Tahrir Square this evening,united in their resolve to topple President Hosni Mubarak,there was another invisible thread tying them all the respectful distance they maintained from the countless Army pickets that have sprouted across downtown Cairo. A wave of a soldiers arm was all it took to control groups of young men streaming into the main square but there is no move by the Army to stop anyone from protesting. Just outside the square,under the 6th October Bridge,an unusual scene unfolds. Amid the chaos,a young Army officer is patiently listening to an elderly man. As his soldiers keep a watchful eye for potential trouble,the young officer offers his chair to the man who has evidently lost his way. After calming the old man,the officer tells his men to let through a taxi thats been held up with this reporter at the checkpoint. A quick word with the driver and the old man is inside the cab,on his way home as all barricades magically open to let the vehicle through. In this quiet Cairo moment,you hear one message,loud and clear: the Army,which enjoys a high level of trust,is going to play a key role in any transitional arrangement as and when it comes in the wake of President Mubaraks exit. In fact,throughout the city,the silent assent of the Army is the underlying strength thats keeping the anti-government supporters going,bringing them onto the streets today,a day they called the Day of (Mubaraks) Departure. There was no word from the 82-year-old Mubarak although the buzz on the street was his interview to US network ABC News in which he said that he had told Obama,a nice man, that you dont understand Egyptian culture. Warning of chaos if he left right now,he insisted that he would serve out the remaining seven months of his term to ensure a stable transition. But not many were willing to grant him that luxury. Although Mubarak is a former Air Force officer and the government consists largely of retired officers,there has been growing resentment within the military against his authoritarian rule,not the least due to his increasing insistence on making son Gamal his successor. Even within the old guard,there is grudging respect for the protesters. Newly appointed Vice-President Omar Suleiman made this clear today when he assured people that the Army would not be used to clear protesters from Tahrir Square. Instead,soldiers seemed to have been asked to ringfence a haven for protesters,they blocked most roads leading to the central square to ward off potential trouble-makers (read pro-government protesters who stormed the square on camels and horses day before yesterday). Result: Cairo was calm,an armed helicopter made repeated sorties over Tahrir square. There was cooperation with the Army,too. Multiple checkpoints were set up by Cairos residents who stopped all vehicles and all visitors heading for the square including journalists closely scrutinizing IDs before allowing them to pass the Army barricades. Most citizens were lightly armed,brandishing knives,sticks and swords. We have to make sure that only genuine protesters get in. Several secret police personnel mixed with the protesters and caused the violence for the past two days, said Amin Aziz,an 18-year-old student,who had been standing guard with his friends since the morning near the Tahrir square. We are helping the Army keep out people who want to cause violence. With no major violence reported today and the resolve stronger than ever,even children have joined in to help form the human chain around the main square. A stick-wielding 12-year-old boy was seen waving in foreign journalists while keeping out others who he did not trust,all under the watchful eye of his father. Inside the square,tens of thousands who gathered for the Day of Departure rally,sang the Egyptian national anthem,waved flags in support of pro-democracy reforms,besides chanting anti-Mubarak slogans and waving banners for his immediate ouster. Demonstrators inside the square gained heart as news reached of largescale protests were also taking place in Alexandria and other cities.
