Timeline: Egypt since the fall of Mubarak A decade has passed since Egyptians took to the streets to end Hosni Mubarak’s 30 years as president, following Tunisia in what would become a wave of Arab Spring uprisings. Here are key dates since the revolt, w
Revolution
Thousands across Egypt protest to demand the departure of their president on January 25, 2011, days after Tunisians topple dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. On February 11, two weeks of vast demonstrations centred in Cairo’s Tahrir Square culminate in Mubarak’s resignation. The military assumes power. A crackdown on the protests leaves at least 850 dead.
Islamist victories
Islamist parties win a majority of seats in parliamentary elections ending in January 2012, but the assembly is dissolved in June. Later that month, Muslim Brotherhood leader Mohamed Morsi wins 51.7 per cent of the vote in the presidential election. He is Egypt’s first civilian, democratically elected president and the first Islamist to head the country. In August, Morsi dismisses military chief Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi and replaces him with Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.
Morsi ousted
Morsi’s rule proves divisive and after massive protests, the military led by Sisi overthrows and arrests him in July 2013. Morsi denounces a coup and his supporters set up protest camps in Cairo. But on August 14, police attack them, killing at least 800 people in clashes. The government names the Muslim Brotherhood a ‘terrorist organisation’ in December.
All-powerful Sisi
Sisi is elected president with 96.9 per cent of the vote in a May 2014 ballot dismissed as ‘cosmetic’ by human rights groups after a new constitution bolsters the military’s powers. In 2015, a new parliament is elected, packed with Sisi supporters.
Repression
The former general presides over a fierce clampdown. Hundreds of suspected Islamists are sentenced to death or life in prison in mass trials. Secular opposition activists are also jailed and rights groups accuse the Sisi regime of torture, forced disappearances, summary executions and repression of dissent. The authorities deny the accusations and point to the need for stability and the fight against terrorism.
Jihadist threat
The country suffers a series of deadly terror attacks, mainly by the Islamic State group. In 2015, a Russian airliner carrying tourists from an Egyptian beach resort explodes after take-off, killing 224 people. IS says it planted a bomb on board. Two years later, a suspected IS attack on a mosque in the Sinai leaves more than 300 dead. More than 100 die in attacks on Christians, also claimed by the group. In 2018, the army launches a vast ‘anti-terrorist’ operation.
International backing
Russian President Vladimir Putin travels to Cairo in 2015 for the first time in a decade, signing a deal to build the country’s first nuclear power plant. The same year, US President Barack Obama’s administration lifts a partial freeze on military assistance. In 2017, Sisi visits Washington, where President Donald Trump praises him. Trump will host Sisi a second time in 2019. Sisi is also invited to Paris where he receives strong support from President Emmanuel Macron, who later visits Egypt.
Powers expanded
In 2018, Sisi is re-elected with 97.08 per cent of the vote. His only opponent is one of his supporters. A year later, a controversial constitutional revision expands Sisi’s powers still further and extends his term from four to six years, giving him the presidency until 2024.
Morsi dies
Morsi, on re-trial for allegedly collaborating with foreign powers and militant groups, collapses in court in June 2019 and is dead on arrival at the hospital. Rights groups say he was denied medical treatment in detention and demand an investigation. — AFP