06 February,2011 08:12 AM IST | | Agencies
Egypt's ruling National Democratic Party (NDP), including President Hosni Mubarak and son Gamal, resigned en masse on Saturday, in a new gesture apparently aimed at convincing anti-government protesters that the regime is serious about reform.
Protesters tear down a poster of President Hosni Mubarak in Cairo
Protesters entered into the 12th day of unprecedented street demonstrations, saying they will settle for nothing less than the immediate ouster of President Hosni Mubarak, Egypt's ruler for nearly 30 years.
Party secretary-general Safwat el-Sharif also stepped down to be replaced by Hossam Badrawi who is reported to have good relations with opposition figures, the regime's channel announced amid ongoing opposition street protests.
Gamal Mubarak, who was a member of the Steering Committee, was widely seen as being groomed by his father Hosni Mubarak to succeed him as president. But Vice President Omar Suleiman promised earlier in the week that Gamal would not run for president in elections due in September.
Saturday morning saw a failed assassination bid on Suleiman that left two of his bodyguards dead as the mass revolt against President Hosni Mubarak entered the 12th day.
Mubarak had named Suleiman as Vice President only recently in an effort to quell the unrest and possibly line up a successor. The announcement was greeted with scorn by some of the tens of thousands of protesters gathered in Cairo's Tahrir Square. Wael Khalil, a 45 year-old activist, said it would "reinforce their (protesters) resolve and increase their confidence because it shows that they are winning, and the regime is retreating inch by inch."
