CAIRO — President Hosni Mubarak defied a quarter of a million protesters demanding he step down immediately, announcing Tuesday he would serve out the last months of his term and “die on Egyptian soil.”
He said he would not seek re-election, but that did not calm the public fury as clashes erupted between his opponents and supporters.
The 82-year-old Mubarak, who has ruled the country for nearly three decades, offered little protesters had sought after a dramatic day in which Egyptians staged their biggest demonstration yet. And he insisted he wouldn’t have sought a fifth term in September even if the protests had never happened.
Mubarak’s halfway concession-an end to his rule seven months down the road-threatened to inflame frustration and anger among protesters, who have been peaceful in recent days but have made clear they will not end their unprecedented week-old wave of demonstrations until he is out.
Soon after his speech, clashes erupted between protesters and government supporters in the Mediterranean city of Alexandria, and gunshots were heard, according to Al-Jazeera television.