Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has said he will not stand for re-election in September, as protests against his rule grow, BBC online reports Tuesday.
Speaking on state TV, Mr Mubarak promised constitutional reform, but said he wanted to stay until the end of his current presidential term.
The announcement came as hundreds of thousands rallied in central Cairo urging him to step down immediately.
It remains to be seen whether Mr Mubarak’s statement is enough for protesters. Some are determined to carry on, while others think these are major concessions and that the protests have gone far enough.
Opposition politician George Ishak expressed dismay at the speech: – We are very disappointed and we are very angry. We have very clear demands and he denied everything that we demanded. He has to go now. I am afraid now of what will happen in the future, he told the BBC.
Leaders of the protests had called on Mr Mubarak to step down by Friday, when demonstrators were planning to march on the presidential palace.
While this address would have been acceptable a week ago, US officials believe that it is now too little too late and Mr Mubarak should leave now.
