Spreading Revolution
PART ONE
A Street Vendor Takes a Stand
PART TWO
Protests Push a Dictator
PART THREE
Young Organizers Mobilize
PART FOUR
Crackdowns Fail
PART FIVE
A Hero Arrives
PART SIX
Mubarak Is Unbowed, Then Gone
In a matter of weeks, the people of Tunisia and Egypt ousted the dictators who had ruled their countries for decades. No individual, group or event was solely responsible for these historic shifts in power. Yet these six turning points helped to bring people, who have long felt abused by their governments, into the streets to revolt.
PART ONE
A Street Vendor Takes a Stand
A young fruit vendor’s fatal protest against his government exposed the deep frustrations of a nation dealing with abusive leaders, high unemployment and poverty. His desperate act ignited a public rage that had long been brewing under the surface.
Riots over the humiliation of Mohamed Bouazizi immediately followed his self-immolation, and clips of the unrest spread quickly over social media sites. Al Jazeera picked up videos from Facebook and carried the news abroad.
By the time Mr. Bouazizi died on Jan. 4, anti-government protests flared across the country.
PART TWO
Protests Push a Dictator
The world watched – and Egyptians found inspiration – as thousands of citizens successfully ousted their leader by taking to the streets, speaking up and refusing to go home.
Jan. 13
After nearly a month of escalating riots, the Tunisian army signaled a refusal to use force against the protesters.
The country's dictator, Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, addressed the nation to tell the protesters, “I understand you.” He fled the next day, signaling the end of a 23-year rule.
PART THREE
Young Organizers Mobilize
A group of young Egyptians that formed in June after the fatal police beating of a 28-year-old man was already primed to follow in Tunisia’s footsteps. The group used its nearly half a million Facebook members and the advice of Tunisian organizers to bring frustrated citizens to the streets.
Jan. 14
The youth organizers announced that Jan. 25 would be a day of protest against the government, by spreading the news online and through the streets with fliers.
Jan. 25
Tens of thousands of people filled the streets of Cairo and other cities to demand the end of the nearly 30-year rule of President Hosni Mubarak. The success of the demonstrations inspired veteran opposition leaders to join the youth groups.
The protests intensified in Cairo, as demonstrators defied the police, kept peace with the military and took hold of Tahrir Square.
PART FOUR
Crackdowns Fail
President Hosni Mubarak’s regime tried to crush the protesters with armed police and thugs. When those tactics failed, the regime tried to turn the country against the protesters with a propaganda campaign, using state media to depict protesters as foreign agents.
On Feb. 2 and 3, the protests intensified as pro-Mubarak demonstrators clashed with pro-democracy protesters.
The government also cracked down on foreign media and human rights workers.
But by Feb. 4, military control of the square helped the clashes subside and peaceful crowds grew again.
PART FIVE
A Hero Arrives
As opposition groups struggled to make progress in the face of the regime’s propaganda campaign, demonstrations began to lose momentum, but a young protest leader emerged to remind tired demonstrators why they were fighting.
Feb. 8
Wael Ghonim, one of the key organizers of the youth movement, gave an emotional television interview after his release from detention by police.
His story of being detained
for two weeks helped re-energize and mobilize protesters. Their numbers swelled again in Tahrir Square.
PART SIX
Mubarak Is Unbowed, Then Gone
After members of the military appeared in Tahrir Square to assure protesters that they would be heard, Hosni Mubarak failed to graciously delegate power. In response, Egyptians took to the street in enormous numbers.
Feb. 10
A council of Egypt's top military leaders announced it would respond to the demands of the protesters.
In a late-night speech, President Mubarak unexpectedly showed no willingness to resign.
But by the next day, Vice President Omar Suleiman told the country that Mr. Mubarak would step down and that the military would take control.
Egyptians rejoiced and celebrated in the streets.