Latin America

In a televised address late Thursday night, embattled Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak delegated executive authority to his newly-appointed vice-president, but stopped short of stepping down. The announcement enraged anti-Mubarak demonstrators in Cairo’s Tahrir Square, who say they will maintain their uprising- now in its 18th day – until Mubarak’s unconditional resignation.

Asmaa Mahfouz, a 26-year-old Egyptian woman who two weeks ago had only one name, now boasts at least three. These include “A woman worth 100 men”, “The girl who crushed Mubarak” and “The leader of the Egyptian revolution”.

With international press coverage focused almost entirely on Cairo’s Tahrir Square, few outsiders have grasped the scale of Egypt’s popular uprising, now in its third week. But massive demonstrations, and pitched battles between pro-democracy protesters and the regime’s security forces, are taking place in every corner of the country.

The booming tourist industry along Mexico’s Caribbean coast, particularly in the area of Cancun and the “Riviera Maya,” is polluting the world’s largest underwater cave system and harming the world’s second largest coral reef, a new study has found.

Over recent years, Egypt has witnessed mounting tension between its Muslim majority and its sizeable Coptic Christian minority. But in Cairo’s Tahrir Square, the site of ongoing mass protests against the ruling regime, members of both faiths chant in unison: “Muslim, Christian, doesn’t matter; We’re all in this boat together!”

Make no mistake about it – Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak will stay in power only as long as his army generals deem it to be in their best interest.

In the quiet desert community of Nomirage, located just 20 kilometers east of San Diego, the sounds of impending war creep over the silent landscape.

Imam Mohammed Al-Saba of the Eisa mosque here in the centre of the rural town Kirdasa takes the pulpit to tell his congregation he can smell “the air of freedom for the first time in 30 years.”

Ripple effects of the Egyptian uprising are now spreading to Gaza, where some groups are planning a new rally next week. Moves by some Gazans to mimic protesters in Egypt, Tunisia and Yemen by taking to the streets are making the Hamas government nervous.

The young activists who began Egypt’s popular uprising admit the online campaign that turned into the country’s largest ever anti-government street demonstrations has far exceeded their expectations. But as the movement gains momentum, protesters are beginning to think about what kind of state will emerge if President Hosni Mubarak falls. And many are worried.