CAIRO - Vast but orderly crowds of anti-government demonstrators filled Tahrir Square Friday chanting for the immediate ouster of President Hosni Mubarak, while journalists trying to cover the protests faced more hostility and attacks.
In Washington, the White House convened a meeting of national security officials to monitor the demonstrations and discuss ways to try and influence events.
Friday's gathering was calm, with none of the bloody clashes with Mubarak loyalists that sparked outrage a day earlier. But at nearby hotels, foreign journalists were ordered out of their rooms or refused entry. And al-Jazeera television network said its Cairo office had been stormed and burned by "gangs of thugs."
Television cameras were largely kept away from the square, where the generally peaceful, sometimes violent protests have captivated a worldwide audience for the last 11 days. Live shots of the demonstrations were extremely limited. But state television broadcast a message saying foreign reporters were "most welcome" in Egypt.
Top U.S. officials have told their Egyptian counterparts repeatedly in recent days that the embattled country must establish a transition government, formed of elements of the Mubarak regime and representatives of leading opposition groups. The respected Egyptian army would play a central role as guarantor.
Those messages have been transmitted by Vice President Biden, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates and Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
One possible scenario, according to officials who agreed to discuss the rapidly changing situation only on condition of anonymity, would be for Mubarak to turn power over to Vice President Omar Suleiman, who could then invite opposition and reform leaders to join a transition government.But while the administration is anxious to move Mubarak out of the way, it is wary of appearing to try to impose a plan, and officials dismissed reports that a specific proposal for the contours of a new government was under discussion.
The biggest roadblock to negotiations on the ground was Mubarak's ongoing refusal to step down before elections currently scheduled for September. Opposition leaders have said they will not discuss a transition until he is gone. They have given no indication that Suleiman - the Egyptian intelligence chief Mubarak elevated to vice president only days ago - would be an acceptable substitute.
In an interview Thursday, Mubarak told ABC that he had told President Obama: "You don't understand the Egyptian culture and what would happen if I step down now."
Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq said late Thursday that Egypt's interior minister should not disrupt Friday's protests. And while soldiers kept a watchful eye, the demonstrators gathered in large numbers without interference. Organizers dubbed Friday the "Day of Departure," in hopes that, finally, their protests would succeed in compelling Mubarak to leave.
After passing through security checkpoints, thousands upon thousands of Egyptians entered the vast, open square and performed the weekly Friday prayers, kneeling and prostrating themselves in accordance with the muezzin's call.
When they finished praying, they began to chant.
"Leave! Leave!"
"Down, down with Hosni Mubarak!"
"We won't go, he will go!"
"Today is the last day!"
Al-Jazeera reported that Arab League secretary general Amr Moussa, a former foreign minister of Egypt, joined protesters in the square on Friday afternoon. Moussa is seen by many as a more likely replacement for Mubarak than Nobel laureate Mohamed ElBaradei - the favorite of many demonstrators - because he hasn't been outside the country for most of his career.
Moussa told France's Europe 1 radio that he was "at the disposal of my country. . . ready to serve as a citizen who has the right to be a candidate" for president.
Several thousand pro-government demonstrators gathered at a separate rally across town. No clashes were reported.
Meanwhile, the situation for journalists and foreign observers remained murky. In the last week, al-Jazeera's bureau was forcibly closed, its journalists' press credentials were revoked and nine journalists were detained, the network said in a statement.
The network has also faced unprecedented levels of interference in its broadcast signal, as well as persistent and repeated attempts to bring down its Web sites.
"We are grateful for the support we have received from across the world for our coverage in Egypt," al-Jazeera said, "and can assure everyone that we will continue our work undeterred."
Friday's gathering was calm, with none of the bloody clashes with Mubarak loyalists that sparked outrage a day earlier. But at nearby hotels, foreign journalists were ordered out of their rooms or refused entry. And al-Jazeera television network said its Cairo office had been stormed and burned by "gangs of thugs."
Television cameras were largely kept away from the square, where the generally peaceful, sometimes violent protests have captivated a worldwide audience for the last 11 days. Live shots of the demonstrations were extremely limited. But state television broadcast a message saying foreign reporters were "most welcome" in Egypt.
Top U.S. officials have told their Egyptian counterparts repeatedly in recent days that the embattled country must establish a transition government, formed of elements of the Mubarak regime and representatives of leading opposition groups. The respected Egyptian army would play a central role as guarantor.
Those messages have been transmitted by Vice President Biden, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates and Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
One possible scenario, according to officials who agreed to discuss the rapidly changing situation only on condition of anonymity, would be for Mubarak to turn power over to Vice President Omar Suleiman, who could then invite opposition and reform leaders to join a transition government.But while the administration is anxious to move Mubarak out of the way, it is wary of appearing to try to impose a plan, and officials dismissed reports that a specific proposal for the contours of a new government was under discussion.
The biggest roadblock to negotiations on the ground was Mubarak's ongoing refusal to step down before elections currently scheduled for September. Opposition leaders have said they will not discuss a transition until he is gone. They have given no indication that Suleiman - the Egyptian intelligence chief Mubarak elevated to vice president only days ago - would be an acceptable substitute.
In an interview Thursday, Mubarak told ABC that he had told President Obama: "You don't understand the Egyptian culture and what would happen if I step down now."
Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq said late Thursday that Egypt's interior minister should not disrupt Friday's protests. And while soldiers kept a watchful eye, the demonstrators gathered in large numbers without interference. Organizers dubbed Friday the "Day of Departure," in hopes that, finally, their protests would succeed in compelling Mubarak to leave.
After passing through security checkpoints, thousands upon thousands of Egyptians entered the vast, open square and performed the weekly Friday prayers, kneeling and prostrating themselves in accordance with the muezzin's call.
When they finished praying, they began to chant.
"Leave! Leave!"
"Down, down with Hosni Mubarak!"
"We won't go, he will go!"
"Today is the last day!"
Al-Jazeera reported that Arab League secretary general Amr Moussa, a former foreign minister of Egypt, joined protesters in the square on Friday afternoon. Moussa is seen by many as a more likely replacement for Mubarak than Nobel laureate Mohamed ElBaradei - the favorite of many demonstrators - because he hasn't been outside the country for most of his career.
Moussa told France's Europe 1 radio that he was "at the disposal of my country. . . ready to serve as a citizen who has the right to be a candidate" for president.
Several thousand pro-government demonstrators gathered at a separate rally across town. No clashes were reported.
Meanwhile, the situation for journalists and foreign observers remained murky. In the last week, al-Jazeera's bureau was forcibly closed, its journalists' press credentials were revoked and nine journalists were detained, the network said in a statement.
The network has also faced unprecedented levels of interference in its broadcast signal, as well as persistent and repeated attempts to bring down its Web sites.
"We are grateful for the support we have received from across the world for our coverage in Egypt," al-Jazeera said, "and can assure everyone that we will continue our work undeterred."
