Internet returns to Egypt

Internet services returned to Egypt on the morning of Feb 2, with even previously blocked sites such as Twitter available.

The move comes as the Egyptian army encouraged protesters against Hosni Mubarak’s regime to return to normal life. Reports from Cairo suggested that some mobile-phone services, such as text messaging, were still not functioning fully. Supporters of free expression outside Egypt have helped protesters to work around the authorities’ web restrictions, providing dial-up Internet services from abroad. Google created a tool that allowed people to use phone calls to post messages to Twitter. With Internet access back, Egyptians have begun again to stream live video from their mobiles to sites such as Bambuser, which was blocked last week. Live streaming has been seen by protesters as a way to ensure their images are distributed immediately, rather than risk having their phones taken away by police or opponents before they can upload their footage.