Egypt: The Women's March

Today, some 10,000 women of all ages and background marched in downtown Cairo to protest military violence directed at women, including the now famous woman beaten and stripped by the military police in what Secretary of State Clinton called the "systematic degradation of women." The photos confirm the presence of young and old, clad in Western garb, hijab, or even niqab, many of them carrying the photo that went around the world.


Meanwhile the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces issued its latest communique (number 91) as it always communicates, by posting an image on its Facebook page. (Text is in Arabic.) They promised to investigate and punish those responsible for the notorious "virginity tests," and those responsible for the Maspero killings.

Um, your generalships, sirs, the "virginity tests" outrage took place last March. Thank you so much for your prompt attention. These are clearly not just the young activists of Tahrir: SCAF has riled Egyptian women. Their communique suggests that after days of suggesting that the photo was a fake, they really are starting to catch on to what happens when you kick a hornet's nest, or kick a woman whose abaya you've pulled off in a video that's gone around the world.

Here's one of many videos of the march. A line of men protected the women marchers. Not all Egyptian men are like those who so disgraced the uniform.