Violent Clashes Erupt in Cairo Square

Pro-Mubarak groups armed with sticks and rocks have entered Tahrir Square and are fighting running battles with anti-government demonstrators.

Chaos is now spreading through Tahrir Square. While security was tight at Tuesday’s “march of millions,” with both the army and civilians organizing to search people coming into the square for weapons, Wednesday it appears the army did little to stop hundreds of armed supporters of President Hosni Mubarak from streaming into the square and the scene is now one of pandemonium. One Al Jazeera correspondent said rocks were flying through the air as thick as a flock of birds, and men on horseback were attacking groups of anti-Mubarak demonstrators. Initial reports indicate some of the pro-Mubarak forces are plainclothes policemen. There are worries that conditions are ripe for a violent government crackdown. Three hundred people have died since protests began last week.