Strikes replace protests in Egypt

EGYPT’S military rulers have called for an end to strikes and protests as thousands of state employees, from ambulance drivers to police and transport workers, demonstrated to demand better pay in a growing wave of labour unrest unleashed by the democracy uprising that ousted Hosni Mubarak’s regime.

The statement by the ruling military council that took power from Mubarak appeared to be a final warning to protest organisers in labour and professional unions before the army intervenes and imposes an outright ban on gatherings, strikes and sit-ins.

Soldiers cleared out almost all the remaining demonstrators from Cairo’s Tahrir Square, the giant traffic circle that was turned into a protest camp headquarters for the 18-day revolt. At the height of the uprising, hundreds of thousands packed the downtown crossroads.