Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said yesterday that he would step down after the country's elections in September, after eight days of protests demanding an end of his 30-year rule plunged the country into chaos.

But the announcement, a mixture of concession and defiance did not seem to appease the protestors, as many insisted on his immediate exit.

In his speech yesterday evening, Mubarak said that he did not intend to run for another term and that he would work in the last months of his term to ensure a smooth transfer of power.

"My main responsibility is to ensure stability, and in the next few months I will work on the country's stability," he said.

The president announced that he would seek constitutional change, which determines the criteria of the candidacy of the next president.

"I am a military man who served this country during war and peace... I will die on the soil of Egypt," said Mubarak, who was an air force commander before becoming president of the country.

This halfway concession did not appease those people who launched million-man protests yesterday in Cairo and the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria to urge him to step down.

A leading opposition figure, Mohammed ElBaradei said yesterday via Al Arabia channel that Mubarak's speech did not meet people's demand, and he urged his immediate resignation. The opposition parties said there would be no dialogue unless Mubarak resigned.

ElBaradei said yesterday he hoped Mubarak could leave by Friday. "I hope President Mubarak goes before this and leaves the country after 30 years of rule... I don't think he wants to see more blood," ElBaradei said.

He joined forces with the largest opposition group Muslim Brotherhood and other major political parties.

"We have already formed a coalition made up of 10 people including Mohamed ElBaradei for dialogue with the regime but only after Mubarak steps down," said Mohamed El Beltagy, a senior member of the Brotherhood.

Opposition members also called for constitutional amendments and dissolution of parliament as election results were described as "incorrect."

Experts said many protesters would not retreat after the new cabinet was established.

Thousands were still camping out at the Tahrir Square near midnight to continue their demand for Mubarak's immediate exit because another eight months of his staying in power is simply unacceptable to them, who said he would only use the time to consolidate the ground of his partisan and doubted his commitment to making the kind of constitutional changes which he has resisted since taking power in 1981.

The pressure from the United States, Mubarak's key ally, is also mounting.

After Mubarak's announcement, US President Barack Obama made a minutes-long televised statement, saying the orderly transition in Egypt "must begin now."

Obama said he spoke directly to Mubarak after his announcement and the Egyptian president "recognizes that the status quo is not sustainable and that a change must take place."

"What is clear, and what I indicated tonight to President Mubarak is my belief that an orderly transition must be meaningful, it must be peaceful, and it must begin now," Obama said.

"Furthermore, the process must include a broad spectrum of Egyptian voices and opposition parties," he added. "It should lead to elections that are free and fair."

Hundreds of thousands of protestors flooded downtown Cairo since yesterday morning, shouting slogans like "Oust Mubarak" near Tahrir Square, the epicenter of protests.

The opposition parties also called for a general strike and a one-million-people march to the presidential palace. The army, who said on Monday that the protestors' demand was "legitimate," did nothing to disrupt the protests.

Xinhua reporters saw protestors remained in the Tahrir Square, while the presidential palace area was tightly protected by the army and remained calm.

Mubarak reshuffled his government on Monday in an attempt to defuse the week-long protest against his regime, but protestors rejected the moves and said he should surrender power.

Meanwhile, there are also other groups of smaller scales calling for resumption of social order under the leadership of the embattled president.

Despite opposition parties' call for an indefinite strike and a one-million-people march to the presidential palace, some intellectuals distributed leaflets among protestors yesterday, urging people to stay away from "violence" and "chaos."

"The continuation of chaos will only deepen people's suffering and provide chances for looting and other crimes," one of the leaflets read. "This is our Egypt. We must safeguard the country and people."

While a sea of protestors were carpeting the Tahrir Square, about 1,000 people gathered near the foreign ministry to support Mubarak, saying he was the only man capable of keeping the society stable amid the turmoil.

Supporters shouted "Yes, Mubarak," played music and raised a police officer when marching along the Nile.

"The opposition parties do not want our life back to normal unless Mubarak leaves, but what will happen after that? Obviously chaos," said a tourist guide who gave his name Muhamed.

"I have to arm with knifes at night, for the first time in my life, to protect my family and neighbors. Definitely we need reforms, but we do not want changes that deprive us of peaceful life."

Conflicts among people of different interests occurred at some check points. "We want to go to work. Can't you people understand?" shouted a man to anti-government crowds.

Yesterday's protests were largely peaceful. Unlike last Friday's protests, there has been little police presence on streets, giving protesters a wider freedom to express their opinions without tear gas or water canons.

To prevent disturbance of social order, local groups took over the streets, checking luggage and people's IDs.

Normal life has been disrupted since the protests started a week ago. Trains stopped running Monday. The internet remained shutdown. Banks, stock markets and most businesses were closed.

Storage racks for bread, milk, edible oil and local fruits were almost empty in Cairo's supermarkets as people tried to replenish their stores for fear that the chaos could continue and prices could rise.