Egyptian PM Calls for Graffiti to Return

I don't know whether it's just typical bureaucratic miscommunication in a country which invented bureaucracy and has over 5,000 years of practice, or whether the Egyptian authorities were taken by surprise by the outcry over the removal of the Mohamed Mahmoud graffiti, but now a Cabinet statement is saying that the removal "is contrary to [the Cabinet's] will to commemorate the revolution" and noting:

Prime Minister Hesham Qandil calls on artists and painters and others to turn Tahrir Square into a space worthy of the martyrs of the revolution in order to become a symbol of the Egyptian revolution. He called for it to become a platform for freedom of opinion through wall paintings and graffiti, which reflect the spirit of the 25 January revolution, and the principles and aspirations of the Egyptian people.

As I noted earlier today, they're already being repainted.