Anger as Mubarak says he will serve out his term, will not contest election

Updated 11 p.m. - Embattled Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said tonight that he intends to serve out his term but will not stand for presidential elections, due to be held in September.

He said he was very proud of his service for his country and would devote his remaining months to a peaceful transition of power and constitutional change. He also vowed to protect the people and said he would 'die in Egypt' an indication he does not intend to flee.

The remarks were made in a televised broadcast and were greeted by a roar by hundreds of thousands of protesters who gathered in Cairo's main square for an eighth day, calling for his resignation.

However many in the crowd said they wanted him to go now and they said they would continue to protest.

The peaceful crowd was jammed in shoulder-to-shoulder - schoolteachers, farmers, unemployed university graduates, women in conservative headscarves and women in high heels, men in suits and working-class men in scuffed shoes.

They sang nationalist songs and aimed their chant "Leave, leave, leave" at Mr Mubarak as military helicopters flew overhead during the day.

Organisers said the aim was to intensify marches to get the president out of power by Friday, and similar demonstrations erupted in at least five other cities around Egypt.

Soldiers at checkpoints set up at the entrances of the square did nothing to stop the crowds from entering.

The military promised on state TV on Monday that it would not fire on protesters answering a call for a million to demonstrate, a sign that army support for Mr Mubarak may be unravelling as momentum builds for an extraordinary eruption of discontent and demands for democracy.

"This is the end for him. It's time," said Musab Galal, a 23-year-old unemployed university graduate who travelled to the protest from the Nile Delta city of Menoufiya.

Mr Mubarak, 82, would be the second Arab leader pushed from office by a popular uprising in the history of the modern Middle East.

The loosely organised and disparate movement to drive him out is fuelled by deep frustration with an autocratic regime blamed for ignoring the needs of the poor and allowing corruption and official abuse to run rampant.

After years of tight state control, protesters emboldened by the overthrow of Tunisia's president last month took to the streets on January 25 and mounted a relentless series of protests across the nation.

Today's protesters were more organised than on previous days. Volunteers wearing tags reading "the People's Security" circulated through the crowds, saying they were watching for government infiltrators who might try to instigate violence.

"We will throw out anyone who tries to create trouble," one announced over a loudspeaker. Other volunteers joined soldiers at the checkpoints, searching the bags of those entering for weapons.

Organisers said the protest would remain in the square and they would not attempt to march, to avoid friction with the military.

Two dummies representing Mr Mubarak were hung from traffic lights, and written on their chests was the message: "We want to put the murderous president on trial."