Tens of thousands of Egyptians continued to head to Tahrir square in downtown Cairo for the fifteenth day to call for the ouster of President Hosni Mubarak, in power since 1981.
Droves of protesters arrived in Tahrir since the early morning in preparation for another million-member protest announced by the protesters last Friday.
Protesters welcomed those who joined with beating drums, to the rhythm of which they chanted, " Welcome to the free people who have joined the revolutionists."
The streets of Tahrir were completely empty in the early morning after the protesters retreated into the refuge of tents they had erected to protect them from the cold winter nights.
Tahrir square seemed like a massive painting after the protesters used stones–believed to have been hurled at them by Mubarak supporters–to write words like "Depart," "Down with the regime," "Enduring" and "US$70 billion"–in a reference to news reports claiming that Mubarak may be the third wealthiest person in the world after Warren Buffett and Bill Gates, with an estimated fortune of US$40-70 billion.
With a brush and white paint, the protesters also wrote, "The people want to bring down the regime," "No to Mubarak… No to Suleiman," and "Down with the despot."
The protesters displayed posters of the martyrs who died in the protests and called for fair retribution.
A large photo of an officer was exposed in the square under which the following words were written: "Major General Mahmoud al-Batran: Killed at the hands of his colleagues who are loyal to the corrupt regime after he refused to open Fayoum prison."
State-run television announced the death of al-Batran on Friday 28 January, but did not provide details about his murder. However, several clips posted on the internet show prisoners saying that security forces themselves set them free in order to intimidate the people.
According to official reports, approximately 300 Egyptians were killed in the protests calling for the departure of Mubarak, while human rights reports put the number at 1000.
