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Human rights activists with CODEPINK, including Sharat Lin of Fremont, CA, joined Egyptian protesters this week in Cairo as perhaps the only international solidarity delegation on the ground in the country. They have been in the streets with the Egyptian people for the last five days. Several members of the group of nine activists are available by phone for interviews this week. Tomorrow the delegation plans to do a solidarity action at the US Embassy. Medea Benjamin, a leader of the delegation and co-founder of CODEPINK Women for Peace, is currently available by cell phone in Cairo at 011 20-107148431. Sharat Lin is the president of the San Jose Peace and Justice Center and first visited Gaza and the region in 1973. He will return to the Bay Area by the end of the week. Bay Area groups are planning a protest and march to stand in solidarity with the people of Egypt and Tunisia this Saturday, February 5th at 1 pm at the UN Plaza (Market and 8th in San Francisco), and a march across the Golden Gate Bridge on Sunday, February 13.  

The activists report that Egyptians have been excited to see their message of solidarity from the American people. Many Egyptian protesters are carrying signs that say "My address is Tahrir square until Mubarak leaves" and they are holding firm. The activists also report that many Egyptian youth seem ecstatic that President Obama has acknowledged their voice in Egypt's political affairs but they want him to put more pressure on Mubarak to step down. Women are in the streets and have played a major role in the grassroots movement for democracy in Egypt. Today, as violence towards peaceful demonstrators escalates, the activists said rumors have circulated that the pro-Mubarak agitators are paid supporters of the dictator. 

The international CODEPINK delegation had been en route to Gaza via Egypt but with the Rafah border closed they are unable to enter Gaza, and remain in Cairo. The activists will stay in Cairo until they can safely make their way to Gaza, where they intend to continue their delegation for peace. The delegation includes people from the US, Canada, Australia, the UK, Switzerland and India. This is CODEPINK's ninth trip to Egypt and Gaza in the past two years.  

CODEPINK is calling on the President, State Department, and Congress to stop funding the Mubarak regime, which currently receives over $1.8 billion dollars in military assistance annually from the US.  

See photos from CODEPINK delegation in Egypt here: http://bit.ly/idIODQ 

For more information on CODEPINK in Egypt, see the latest news and e-alerts at: www.codepink.org 

For more information about the delegation to Gaza: http://bit.ly/f9Ca2X 

This Saturday, thousands of community members from the San Francisco Bay Area will stand in solidarity with Egyptians, Tunisians, and all the people in the Arab world fighting for freedom and dignity. The International Solidarity Day events in San Francisco will include live interviews with journalists on the ground in Egypt, and a march to call upon the American government to take a firm stance in support of the Egyptian people’s just demands. Endorsers of the demonstration on Saturday include ANSWER Coalition, Arab Resource and Organizing Center, Berkeley Egyptian Students Association, Berkeley Muslim Students Association, Berkeley Students for Justice in Palestine, Cafe Intifada, CODEPINK Women for Peace, Jewish Voice for Peace - Bay Area, Middle East Children's Alliance, San Jose Peace & Justice Center, South Bay Mobilization, Stanford Says No War, Stanford Students Confronting Apartheid, and US Palestinian Community Network.