Transition of power only can end unrest

Cairo: Leading Egyptian activist Mohammad Al Baradei said President Hosni Mubarak should step down and set a framework for transition of power as the only way to end unrest that has rocked Egypt.

The former head of the UN nuclear watchdog told Al Jazeera that Mubarak's speech on Friday, in which he said he would form a new government, was "disappointing" for Egyptians.

Al Baradei, a possible candidate in Egypt's presidential election this year, flew back to Cairo from Vienna on Thursday amid unprecedented protests against President Hosni Mubarak's 30-year rule.

"The system of Hosni Mubarak has failed to achieve the political, economic and social demands of the Egyptian people and we want to build a new Egypt founded on freedom, democracy and social justice," he said.

"The main demand is that President Mubarak announces clearly that he will resign, or that he will not run again."

Al Baradei said: "We have to place a framework for a transitional government in which a president whose main mission is to put in place a new democratic constitution is voted, after which new parliamentary elections would be held and Egypt starts a new era."

Fair election

Since his arrival in February, Al Baradei has said he would be a candidate for the presidency but only if the Constitution were revised to allow for a free and fair election. Al Baradei has worked to bring together liberal intellectuals and the outlawed Islamist movement, the Muslim Brotherhood.