*Asharq al-Awsat reports that in private, many Iraqi embassy staff abroad have begun thinking about a post-Saddam Iraq and what it will mean for their lives. They deny this concern is selfish, saying they can see that the regime could well fall soon. I can only imagine that ambassadors and chargés of Iraq in Europe are high Baath officials with things to answer for, and I guess they are right to be worried.

*There were large demonstrations yesterday at the al-Azhar seminary and at al-Husayn square in Cairo, Egypt, against [alleged] US aggression toward Palestinians and Iraqis. Mainstream politicians from the left parties attended. The al-Azhar demonstration included both secular politicians and Islamists who came for prayer. A left/Islamist alliance helped overthrow the Shah, and if such relationships are being forged in Egypt it is a bad sign for Mubarak's regime.