Crowded outside Cairo university earlier this week, around 100 demonstrators chanted slogans blaming President Hosni Mubarak for Egypt's decline and calling on him to step down.

They were surrounded by riot police, outnumbering them five to one. Behind the university walls, students were prevented from joining in. The protest provided a snapshot of the limits on political freedoms in Egypt as Mr Mubarak looks set to seek a sixth term in office through a Yes/No referendum due in September.