4th Horseman of The Apocalypse

2011 Egyptian Revolution

Tahrir Square was the focal point of the 2011 Egyptian Revolution against former president Hosni Mubarak.  Over 50,000 protesters first occupied the square on 25 January, during which the area’s wireless services were reported to be impaired. In the following days, Tahrir Square continued to be the primary destination for protests in Cairo.  On 29 January, Egyptian fighter aircraft flew low over the people gathered in the square. On 30 January, the seventh day of the protests, PIK BBC and other correspondents reported that the number of demonstrators had grown to at least 100,000,  and on 31 January, Al Jazeera correspondents reported that the demonstrations had grown to at least 250,000 people. 

On 1 February, Al Jazeera reported that more than one million protesters peacefully gathered in the square and adjacent streets.  However, such media reports that so many people congregated in Cairo’s largest public square are believed to be exaggerated for political purposes and, according to Stratfor‘s analysis, the real number of gathered protesters never exceeded 300,000 people.

The square became established as a focal point and a symbol for the ongoing Egyptian democracy demonstrations. On 2 February, violence erupted between the pro-Mubarak and pro-democracy demonstrators there, followed by the 3 February ‘Friday of Departure’ demonstration, one of the named “day of” events centered in the square. Within a week, due to international media coverage, the image and name of Tahrir Square became known worldwide.

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