Egypt’s “Pharoah”, Mr Hosni Mubarak, resigned as President and handed control to the military on Friday after 30 years in power, bowing to a historic 18-day wave of pro-democracy demonstrations by hundreds of thousands. “The people ousted the President,” chanted a crowd of tens of thousands outside his Presidential palace in Cairo.

Egypt’s “Pharoah” Hosni Mubarak resigned as President and handed control to the military on Friday after 29 years in power, bowing to a historic 18-day wave of pro-democracy demonstrations by hundreds of thousands. “The people ousted the President,” chanted a crowd of tens of thousands outside his presidential palace in Cairo.
Several hundred thousand protesters massed in Cairo’s central Tahrir Square exploded into joy, cheering and waving Egyptian flags. Fireworks,

Egypt’s military announced on national television it had stepped in to “safeguard the country”, effectively seizing control and assuring protesters calling for President Hosni Mubarak’s ouster that all their demands would be met.

President Hosni Mubarak provoked rage on Egypt's streets on Thursday when he said he would hand over powers to his deputy but refused to step down after more than two weeks of protests demanding that he quit.

The Egyptian military's Supreme Command Council was meeting on Friday and was to make an 'important statement to the people', the state news agency MENA reported.

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak left Cairo Friday for an undisclosed destination, security sources said.

Embattled Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak left Cairo with his family on Friday, a source close to the government told AFP, but his destination was not immediately clear.

Cairo's streets exploded in joy on Friday when President Hosni Mubarak stepped down after three-decades of autocratic rule and handed power to a junta of senior military commanders.

Egyptians counted the economic cost of more than two weeks of turmoil on Wednesday as protesters on Cairo’s Tahrir Square looked ahead to their next big push to oust President Hosni Mubarak later in the week.

Egypt's government warned of a military crackdown as massive rallies against President Hosni Mubarak spread and reports surfaced that the army had detained and tortured pro-democracy activists.