If Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak wants to "save his skin," he should leave today, said prominent opposition fiigure Mohamed ElBaradei on Sunday in an interview with CNN. "Leave in dignity before things get out of hand," he said, in implicit warning that chaos would intensify in the country if Mubarak refused to leave. He spoke in a defiant tone two days after police forces deployed tear gas and water cannons to disperse a protest led by the noble prize laureate. The same day, the police forces withdrew from the capital and the army intervened. After the police withdrew, widespread looting and vandalism was reported, including theft at the Egyptian museum, one Egypt's most prominent landmarks. In implied criticism of the role of the United States in supporting the Egyptian president for many years, ElBaradei labeled Mubarak's rule "30 years of brutal dictatorship supported by everyone in the name of stability." He sent a clear warning to the 82-year old president who has ruled the country by emergency law for the entirety of his reign. "We have seen a history of what happens to dictators... I wouldn't like to see that happen in Egypt," he said. Egypt was swept by protests for the sixth continual day in Sunday. Hundreds of thousands of protesters took to the streets this week demanding the ousting of Mubarak's regime. Mubarak has so far refused to heed the protesters' demand that Mubarak relinquish power in the country. In a speech to the nation on Friday, Mubarak appeared content to sack the cabinet while maintaining his grip on power. Mubarak held talks with Vice President Omar Suleiman on Sunday whose appointment on Saturday has possibly set the scene for a transition in power, Defense Minister Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, Chief of Staff Sami al-Anan and other senior commanders. Amidst a heavy military presence, up to 4,000 people gathered in Cairo's Tahrir Square, which has become a rallying point to express anger at poverty, repression and corruption in the Arab world's most populous nation. Warplanes and helicopters flew over the square and by late afternoon extra army trucks appeared in an apparent attempt to enforce a curfew through a show of military force. "Hosni Mubarak, Omar Suleiman, both of you are agents of the Americans," shouted protesters, referring to the appointment of intelligence chief Suleiman as vice president, the first time Mubarak has appointed a deputy in 30 years of office. It was the position Mubarak, a key US ally, held before he become president and many saw the appointment as ending his son Gamal's long-predicted ambitions to take over and as an attempt to reshape the administration to placate reformists. Clearly those in Tahrir Square did not wish to see Mubarak's ruling structure replaced by a military line-up featuring his closest cronies. "Mubarak, Mubarak, the plane awaits," said demonstrators, intent on getting rid of the old guard. The turmoil, in which more than 100 people have died, has sent shock waves through the Middle East where other autocratic rulers may face similar challenges, and unsettled financial markets around the globe as well as Egypt's allies in the West. The final straw seems to have been parliamentary elections in November last year, which observers said authorities rigged to exclude the opposition and secure Mubarak's ruling party a rubber-stamp parliament. The military response to the crisis has been ambivalent. Troops now guard key buildings after police lost control of the streets, but have neglected to enforce a curfew, often fraternizing with protesters rather than confronting them. It remains to be seen if the armed forces will keep Mubarak in power, or decide he is a liability to Egypt's national interests, and their own. It was also unclear if Mubarak had decided to talk with the generals or if he was summoned by them. It was Tunisian generals who persuaded former President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali to flee last month after weeks of protests. The crisis deepened on Sunday with Egyptians facing lawlessness on the streets with security forces and citizens trying to stop rampaging looters.
