Dialogue only after protesters' demands are met, Al Baradei says

Cairo: In Egypt's biggest demonstration so far, over a million people from all walks of life gathered in Tahrir Square on Tuesday demanding that President Hosni Mubarak step down.

There were rumours that pro-government elements in plain clothes infiltrated the crowd to provoke confrontation, but there were no major reports of violence.

The army on Monday said it would not use force against demonstrators. Yesterday, however, soldiers did not smile, chat or allow protesters to stand atop tanks as before.

Even anti-government slogans painted on some of the tanks were covered up. Some soldiers filmed protesters. However, the mood was generally festive.

Kaidi, a young woman from Estonia, decided to join the protests instead of leaving. "My parents went through the same thing in 1991 trying to expel the Soviets. I don't remember it much but I kept being told about it as I grew up. So I'm here for my parents. This is Egypt's 1991," she said.

Ali Waali, 47, a consultant living in Abu Dhabi, marched with a Quran and an iPhone. "I don't want to be one of those Egyptians who leaves his country for a better life with no prospects of coming back. I want to struggle for an Egypt my children can come back to," he said.

Huge rallies also took place in Alexandria and Suez, where protesters chanted: ‘Leave, leave. Revolution, revolution everywhere'.

Opposition leader Mohammad Al Baradei also said Mubarak must leave the country. "There can be dialogue but it has to come after the demands of the people are met," he told Al Arabiya television.

Meanwhile, Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh held urgent meetings with parliament ahead of a ‘day of rage' demonstration planned in Sana'a tomorrow.

In Syria, campaigns on Facebook and Twitter were also mobilising protests.

Erdogan appeal

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday urged Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak to meet his people's "desire for change".

"Hear the cry of the people and their extremely humane demands. Meet the people's desire for change without hesitation... In today's world, freedoms cannot be postponed or overlooked," Erdogan said.

Meanwhile, the British government said it was disappointed by the new Egyptian cabinet as its members were unlikely to produce the kind of political change demanded by the country's citizens.

The UN human rights chief, Navi Pillay, said yesterday's rallies could be a "pivotal moment" for Egypt, adding that there were reports of nearly 300 killed in this week's turmoil.

"The blood must stop flowing. There have been too many deaths, too many wounded," the French foreign ministry said in a statement.