Photo Essay: Egypt in turmoil

When people take to the streets to demand change, it is often those very people who want to share their experiences with the world online. Ramy Raoof is one such man – a self-proclaimed human rights defender, Raoof has been consistently tweeting, blogging and photographing his observations from Cairo in the past week. He edits the Arab-language blog Egyptian Blog for Human Rights. Also, he recently posted a video (embedded) on Friday’s massive protests to the site Vimeo.

On Flickr, he has posted powerful photos of the demonstrations seen across the globe. They tell a fraction of the narrative we have witnessed in the past few days, but they nevertheless convey an arresting look at what Egyptians have been demanding from their government.

Below are some of his images (all licenses under Creative Commons):

Egyptians kneeling to pray while tanks appear in the background, in Cairo

RamyRaoof

Demonstrators at Cairo’s Tahrir Square

RamyRaoof

A girl being held up by an Egyptian soldier. She is shouting “Freedom! Freedom!”

RamyRaoof

Egyptian demonstrators sitting to make letters that spell “No to Mubarak”

RamyRaoof

A protester in Cairo holds up a sign asking for Hosni Mubarak’s swift exit

RamyRaoof

A demonstrator shows the photographer a bullet he found on the ground in Cairo

RamyRaoof

Demonstration in Imbaba, Cairo, while been attacked by tear gas

RamyRaoof

Egyptians praying, head down to the ground, as tanks wait in the background

RamyRaoof

Army trucks surrounding Tahrir Square, Cairo

RamyRaoof

Egyptians praying during protests in Cairo

RamyRaoof