Egypt military struggle to find a place with young people

Today News Egypt military struggle to find a place with young people: Military of Egypt was famous for his stance during the revolt that toppled President Hosni Mubarak. But when a general recounted his participation in more than 1,000 people, including several in the crowd showed they were not willing to accept any fanfare.

"What would have happened if the army when he went to the street, has not made the right decision?" Asked the general to the conference on Wednesday, referring to his decision not to take action against protesters who toppled Mubarak in February.

"Libya! Syria!" the crowd shouted approval of the members who packed the room in the building of the military theater.

And then someone shouted: "It would not have been your right to attack us!" Others then stood up and started chanting: "We want a constitution, now!"

The event was billed as the first public meeting between members of the Egypt's ruling body, the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, and the young people of the rebellion.

The generals were reduced to pleading with the crowd to remain quiet -- a role they were clearly unused to.

Even as they promised a transition to civilian rule, one general lost his temper and shouted: "When I speak, you listen!"

It was held after the generals found themselves under fire for alleged abuses, with several youth groups announcing a boycott of the meeting in protest at military trials for civilians and because they said the conference lacked substance.

Several dozen held a protest outside the theatre building.

Most of the crowd, however, was clearly sympathetic to the military, offering profuse applause, but a sizeable contingent repeatedly heckled the generals over alleged abuses.

One of the latest accusation came after the American broadcaster CNN reported that a general admitted that soldiers had forced women, arrested during a March 9 protest, to undergo virginity tests. The military has denied the report.

Long confined to barracks, the "top brass" now appears to be struggling as it tries to steer a post-revolutionary country of 80 million people to a parliamentary election in September.

It has also been criticised for summoning journalists over their reporting.

The generals, who appear genuinely earnest, often appear on talk shows and publish their statements on Facebook, one of the networking tools activists used to topple Mubarak.

But such is the growing mistrust between activists of a seemingly well-intentioned security last week that the military avoided a demonstration has been interpreted by some activists as a veiled threat that it would allow thugs to attack protesters.