The 2011 Egyptian Protests

Emergency Law (Law No. 162 of 1958) was enacted after the 1967 Six-Day War, suspended for 18 months in the early 1980s, and continuously in effect since Anwar El Sadat's 1981 assassination. Under the law, police powers are extended, constitutional rights suspended, censorship is legalised, and the government may imprison individuals indefinitely and without reason. The law sharply limits any non-governmental political activity, including street demonstrations, non-approved political organisations, and unregistered financial donations.
The Mubarak government has used the reason of terrorism to continue extending emergency law, and has claimed that opposition groups like the Muslim Brotherhood could come into power in Egypt if the current government did not forgo parliamentary elections, confiscate the group's main financiers' possessions, and detain group figureheads—actions allowed under emergency law. Pro-democracy advocates in Egypt argue that this goes against the principles of democracy, which include a citizen's right to a fair trial and their right to vote for whichever candidate or party they choose. Human rights organisations estimate that in 2010 between 5,000 and 10,000 people were in long-term detention without charge or trial, and that in the 1990s the number of detainees was over 20,000.
Despite heavy-handed security measures, Copts and Egyptians broadly have accused the Egyptian government of negligence, failing to provide adequate security when a bomb exploded on New Year's Day in front of an Alexandria church, killing 23 Coptic Christians. It was suspected to have been detonated by the Gaza-based Army of Islam. Following the attacks many Christians protested in the streets, with Muslims later joining the protests. After clashing with the police, protesters in Alexandria and Cairo shouted slogans denouncing Mubarak's rule.