Remember the Arab Spring?

Less than 18 months ago it was a beacon of hope across the Middle East as Tunisia, then Egypt and subsequently Libya saw their people rise up against dictatorship.

How tragic it now is to watch recent events in Egypt where the old regime, still rooted in the armed forces and security services, refuses to relinquish power. What has occurred in Cairo over the past few days amounts to a silent coup d'etat. Not only has the elected parliament been dissolved but along with it the powerbase of the Muslim Brotherhood, which won the largest number of seats barely six months ago. Eroded, too, are the aspirations of the revolutionaries of Tahrir Square.

As the country faces a presidential election, many feel they are "between two fires" – a reference to the candidates, Ahmed Shafiq, former President Hosni Mubarak's last prime minister and Mohammed Mursi of the Muslim Brotherhood.

Among those who took to Cairo's streets to rid themselves of Mubarak there is now the sense of a need to do the same again to ensure that the last vestiges of his old guard are finally consigned to the past. Just what that will entail is most likely to involve more violence.

Meanwhile, the revolutionary gains in Libya remain fragile, and there is ongoing crisis in Syria. If the sacrifices and tentative gains of the Arab Spring are not to be squandered, the international community must not take its diplomatic eye off the ball at this crucial moment.