Daybreak: Army Backs Mubarak, Crowds Don’t
Plus the White House scrambles, and more in the news
February 11, 2011
Tahrir Square last night.(Mohammed Abed/AFP/Getty Images)
• Egypt’s army is backing President Hosni Mubarak’s decision to say on as president until the September elections while delegating some power to Vice President Omar Suleiman. This is key. [WSJ]
• The administration did not see Mubarak’s defiance coming; in fact, this defiance was something of a middle finger directed at it. President Obama insisted last night the transition to democracy must be more clear, “unequivocal.” [WP]
• In Israel’s leadership, relief; in the rest of the region’s leadership, relief, which they have to disguise a bit more. [WP]
• Some reports have it that Mubarak and his family have temporarily left Cairo. [CBS News]
• An Israeli official who spoke to Mubarak explained that the Egyptian president knows his time is up, but wants to leave in an “honorable” fashion.” (Um, ooops.) [LAT]
• Mohammed ElBaradei finally emerges in his rightful place, as the opposition person who writes a Times op-ed. [NYT]
Marc Tracy is a staff writer at The New Republic, and was previously a staff writer at Tablet. He tweets @marcatracy.
