After hearing the news that President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt stepped down, we called Ahmed “Mickey” Roushdy, our Middle East/Africa Coordinator to get a firsthand account of the atmosphere in Cairo at the moment. Here’s what he had to say:
“It came as a shock, especially after yesterday’s speech. People went down (to Tahrir Square) today saying that they won’t leave the streets until he leaves…and he did. So it’s definitely a shock to many. Everyone is in the streets – I was in the streets when this happened, I was doing some shopping. I didn’t hear what was happening at first but assumed from the (reaction in the) streets – it was like when we win a World Cup or an African Cup of Nations – everyone is excited, everyone is in the streets, there were fireworks fired.
This is exciting in terms of change, in terms of having a former president, it’s something new – something that some people have never known before. Everyone is having mixed feelings but the fact is for 30 years we had one president, we never had a vice president, and overall people are excited that we have a change.
We won’t be able to sleep tonight because of all of this. I mean, we know how to celebrate!”
Mickey stepped out onto his balcony so that we could hear the sound of the people chanting “people took down the regime!” and car horns and guns – without bullets – shooting up in the air in celebration. He will keep us updated and send photos and video if possible. Let us know if you have questions for Mickey, or for any of our members in Egypt.
See a video from the streets of Cairo on PTPI’s Facebook Page