Egypt ruling party offers no concessions

Ben Curtis, AP



Egypt ruling party offers no concessions

By HAMZA HENDAWI and HADEEL AL-SHALCHI, Associated Press Hamza Hendawi And Hadeel Al-shalchi, Associated Press

CAIRO – Egypt's ruling party said Thursday it was ready for a dialogue with the public but offered no concessions to address demands for a solution to rampant poverty and political change heard in the country's largest anti-government protests in years.

At the same time, the grass roots protest movement was getting a double boost likely energize the largest anti-government demonstrations Egypt has seen in years. Mohammed ElBaradei, a Nobel peace laureate and the country's top pro-democracy advocate, was returning to the country Thursday night and declared he was ready to lead the protests. The country's largest opposition group — the fundamentalist Muslim Brotherhood — also threw its support behind the demonstrations.

Protests erupted for a third straight day and social networking sites were abuzz with talk that Friday's rallies could be some of the biggest so far calling for the ouster of President Hosni Mubarak after 30-years in power. Millions gather at mosques across the city for Friday prayers, providing organizers with a huge number of people already out on the streets to tap into.

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I don't believe in prayer, but I am most definitely hoping for as little violence as possible Friday. This will be a very crucial point in this uprising.