Image source: Al-Jazeera

BY ZACH TOOMBS

Tensions between Egyptian civilians and their now-military-controlled government have escalated into two days of violent clashes on the streets of Cairo.

MSNBC has more.

“This video here, of Cairo, shows protesters throwing rocks at Egyptian soldiers during some violent clashes that killed at least eight people and injured hundreds more. The military took control of the country after a civilian uprising forced longtime-President Hosni Mubarak to step down. The protesters want power transferred immediately to civilian authority instead of waiting for a presidential election sometime in mid-2012.”

Although Egypt’s military originally stepped in to aid the transition between Mubarak’s government and a new citizen-controlled structure, Al Jazeera reports protesters have grown increasingly concerned that the military plans to hold on to power, especially after Prime Minister Kamal El Ganzouri broke his promise that no violence would be used to quell the protests.

RAWYA RAGEH: “That’s how security forces responded minutes after the Egyptian prime minister promised no violence will be used. Protesters didn’t expect much from the man whose very choice as head of cabinet was the main reason behind their sit in. Still, what he had to say disappointed many.”

KAMAL EL GANZOURI: “What we’re having today is not a revolution. It’s an attack against the revolution.”

And CNN reports the methods used against protesters by the Egyptian military have also been harsh.

“Erin, according to eyewitnesses, it appears that live ammunition has been used against these demonstrators. Not only that -- from photographs and video we’ve seen, the soldiers have been throwing Molotov cocktails, rocks, bricks, furniture. In one case, one soldier has even been photographed urinating on the demonstrator.”

According to The New York Times, the protests represent a new low in relations between Egyptian civilians and the military that promised to protect them during the nation’s transition.

“The contradiction in the military-led government’s statements and actions appeared to represent a shift in strategy by the military council. After trying for months to preserve some credibility and collaboration with the Egyptian political elite, the ruling generals on Saturday scarcely acknowledged the demands … that the military cease its violence … ”