Leading Egyptian journalist says Egypt protests have shaken regime forever

[ 05/02/2011 - 03:59 PM ]

CAIRO, (PIC)-- Senior Egyptian writer Mohamed Hassanein Heikal said the Egyptian revolution restored the spirit of Egyptian nationality and shook the pillars of President Mubarak's regime.

He warned attempts were being made to bury the "noble revolution".

The people voiced their word on Tuesday's referendum, turning the page on the existing regime for good, despite attempts to circumvent the people's will by suggesting the regime could achieve in six months what it failed to do over the last thirty years, Heikal said in an interview with Al-Jazeera.

Mubarak offered a list of concessions to protesters on Tuesday, including a promise not to run in coming elections.

Heikal, whose commentary on Arab affairs has been well-received for the past fifty years, described protesters gathered in Tahrir Square in central Cairo as "an embodiment of Egypt's pride", adding "they are the noblest and most beautiful the country has borne."

They are "the people's pride and dream," he said.

When Egyptians were asked to express their anger on Tuesday, some seven million citizens across Egypt responded and voiced their word in an unparalleled referendum, he went on to say.

He said the message did not ring in Egypt and the Arab world alone, but it strongly echoed across the entire planet until it was received and grasped.

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