CAIRO (AP)–Egypt’s powerful military backed President Hosni Mubarak’s plan to stay in office until September elections, enraging hundreds of thousands of protesters who deluged squares in at least three major cities Friday, marched on presidential palaces and broke through army barricades at the state TV building–key symbols of the authoritarian regime.
The army’s show of solidarity with the president was a heavy blow to protesters who called on the military to take action to push Mubarak out after he announced Thursday night that he would hand most of his powers to Vice President Omar Suleiman but remain in office.
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Al Arabiya television reported on Friday that President Hosni Mubarak and his family had left Cairo from a military airbase in the suburbs and had travelled to the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.
It did not give a source for the series of reports on the movement of the president and his family. Al-Arabiya said it had confirmed the arrival of the president and his family in Sharm el-Sheikh.
A senior military source contacted by Reuters declined to comment on the report. Al-Arabiya had initially reported “news” that Mubarak and his family had left Egypt.
The president often spends time in Sharm el-Sheikh, a popular tourist destination on the Red Sea, and receives guests there.