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Summary Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak stepped down as chairman of the ruling party while Hossam Badrawi has been appointed the new secretary-general of the party
Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak stepped down as chairman of the ruling party. Mubarak stepped down along with the rest of the National Democratic Partys (NDP) top leadership, as tens of thousands of protesters remained defiant in Cairos Tahrir Square. Hossam Badrawi has been appointed the new secretary-general of the party. He replaces Safwat El-Sherif, a Mubarak loyalist, in that post. Badrawi will also replace Gamal Mubarak, Mubaraks son, as head of the partys political bureau. Earlier, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak met ministers responsible for the main economic portfolios within his new government. The meeting included the Prime Minister, Dr Ahmed Shafiq; the governor of Egypts Central Bank, Dr Farouk el-Okdah; the petroleum and mineral resources minister, Sameh Fahmi; the social cohesion minister, Dr. Ali el-Misilhi; the minister of trade and industry, Dr. Samiha Fawzi; the finance minister, Dr. Samir Radwan; and Dr. Zakaria Azmi, the head of the presidential palace. Mubarak continued to resist calls for his immediate resignation saying he will serve out the remaining seven months of his term to ensure a stable process. Mubarak said on Thursday Egypt faced chaos if he resigned now, though he has promised to step down in September. Demonstrations against the president entered into a 12th day on Saturday with no sign of an end to a confrontation which has pitted the 82-year-old leader against thousands of anti-government protesters. Hundreds of thousands of Egyptians held mostly peaceful demonstrations across the country on Friday to demand an immediate end to Mubaraks 30-year rule. And in Cairos Tahrir Square, the hub of demonstrations, protesters occupying the usually busy intersection in the heart of the city said they were not giving up though numbers were down from Friday.
