Cairo, Egypt (CNN) — Tens of thousands of people joined the beaten and bandaged in Cairo’s Tahrir Square today, Islam’s day of prayer, transforming it from a bloody battleground to the scene of a largely peaceful political rally dubbed “Day of Departure.”
But tensions remained high and in another square just half a kilometer away, supporters and foes of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak fought running street battles.
Youths wielding sticks and rocks engaged in fights and the sound of gunfire rang out.
The opposition Muslim Brotherhood, an outlawed Islamist umbrella group, reported that a security force accompanied by a “gang of thugs” stormed the office of its news website and arrested the journalists, technicians and administrators. The satellite news network Al-Jazeera reported a similar attack on its Cairo office.
Those attacks came after two days of violence and a government crackdown on journalists and human rights activists bearing witness to the crisis.
Undeterred, anti-government protesters jammed Tahrir Square chanting slogans like “He leaves, we don’t leave” and “The blood of the martyrs will not be forgotten.” A massive banner in the middle of the square said in English: “The people demand the removal of the regime.”
The demonstrators built a barbed-wire barricade and stacked piles of rocks throughout the square, surrounded Friday by soldiers in riot gear and tanks.
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Volunteers checked identifications cards of people entering the square and searched them for weapons. Others stood by with emergency medical kits.
Large screens showed coverage of the demonstrations on state television and Al-Jazeera as people played music, sang patriotic songs and danced. A man with an Egyptian flag wrapped around his head sat on a curb, flashing a victory sign.
It was a remarkable change from the scenes that unfolded in the square Wednesday and Thursday when pro- and anti-Mubarak supporters clashed repeatedly, leaving at least eight people dead and more than 900 others injured.
The Health Ministry reported that at least 5,000 people have been injured since the demonstrations began in Egypt early last week.
Many believe the violent clashes were orchestrated by the embattled regime and today, the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights called for a “transparent and impartial” probe.
But defenders of Mubarak were notably absent from the square. Instead, they staged a “Day of Loyalty” rally at a nearby mosque.
The anti-government demonstrators gave the man who has ruled Egypt for three decades until the end of the day to relinquish power.
Mubarak announced he will not seek re-election in the September election but now faces increasing pressure from the United States and other world powers to step aside much sooner.
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