Originally posted by the Voice of America. Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America, a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in the public domain. Egypt Opposition Calls for Renewed Protests VOA News 26 January 2011 A protester holds rocks in the air, ready to throw at riot police, as he urges other protesters on during clashes in Cairo, Egypt, 26 Jan 2011 Photo: AP A protester holds rocks in the air, ready to throw at riot police, as he urges other protesters on during clashes in Cairo, Egypt, 26 Jan 2011 An Egyptian opposition group has called for a second day of protests in Cairo, just hours after police fired tear gas and beat anti-government protesters to clear a central square in the city. The 6th of April Youth Movement used its Facebook page to urge protesters to continue Wednesday, after the largest demonstrations in years against President Hosni Mubarak's decades-old rule. Egypt's Interior Ministry said Wednesday no new demonstrations would be allowed, and warned that protesters would be prosecuted. Waves of rock-throwing demonstrators occupied Cairo's Tahrir Square for hours Tuesday, beating back attempts to dislodge them by police wielding tear gas and water cannons. Several thousand people demonstrated in Alexandria, and there were reports of large protests in other cities including Mansoura and Mahalla al-Kobra. Two protesters and a police officer were killed in Tuesday's unrest, which was inspired by uprisings in Tunisia. French Foreign Minister Michele Alliot Marie said Wednesday his country believes "one must be able to protest without violence, let alone deaths." The White House urged all parties to refrain from violence, and said the Egyptian government has a chance to respond with political, economic and social reforms that can help the country prosper. Opposition groups, including Egypt's Kifaya movement, used Facebook and Twitter to organize the protests. Twitter said Tuesday its site had been blocked in Egypt, and that it believes "the open exchange of information and views benefits societies." Tuesday's demonstrations began peacefully, with police at first showing restraint. Several people said the clashes began in Cairo after protesters attempted to take control of a water cannon truck. Such a coordinated wave of anti-government protests has not been seen in Egypt since Mr. Mubarak took power in 1981 after former President Anwar Sadat was assassinated by Islamists. The protests were promoted online by groups saying they speak for young Egyptians frustrated with the kind of poverty and oppression that triggered Tunisia's unrest. Legal parties such as the liberal Wafd, as well as the banned Muslim Brotherhood - Egypt's largest and best organized opposition group - did not formally endorse the demonstrations, but a number of their members took part. Emergency laws in place since 1981 outlaw demonstrations without prior permission. Opposition groups said they were denied such permits for Tuesday's rallies, planned to coincide with a national holiday honoring the police, a key force in keeping President Mubarak in power. Since Tunisia's anti-government protests, at least five Egyptians have attempted suicide by self-immolation, imitating the young Tunisian whose burning death in December first galvanized protesters there. Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.  NEW: Follow our Middle East reports on [1]Twitter and discuss them on our [2]Facebook page. References 1. http://twitter.com/VOAMidEast 2. http://www.facebook.com/pages/VOAMiddleEastVoices/124360240958667? v=wall .