Mubarak defiant as Egypt toll rises, Obama wades in

Egyptian president sacks cabinet, vows reform as protesters continue demand for him to step down.

CAIRO: Egypt's embattled President Hosni Mubarak on Saturday addressed the nation for the first time since deadly protests erupted against his regime, vowing reform but showing no sign of relaxing his decades-old grip on power.

US President Barack Obama meanwhile called on Egyptian authorities not to use violence against the raging political protests, and drove home his message in a 30-minute phone call with Mubarak.

Four days after angry protesters first took to the street and with at least 27 people killed in subsequent street battles, a stoney-faced Mubarak said he had sacked the government and would pursue economic and political reforms.

"I have asked the government to resign and tomorrow there will be a new government," Mubarak, 82, said on state television as protests raged in Cairo and other cities despite a night-time curfew. "We will not backtrack on reforms. We will continue with new steps which will ensure the independence of the judiciary and its rulings, and more freedom for citizens," he said.

Protesters who have been demanding Mubarak step down, as well as an end to endemic state corruption and police brutality that have become systematic under his rule, dismissed the speech as too little, too late.

"We don't care if the government resigns, we want him to resign," said demonstrator Khaled, 22, in the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria. Student Abdo, 20, said: "Prices are still high, the problems are still there, this doesn't solve anything."

Thirteen people died in clashes with police on Friday in the canal city of Suez, at least five in Cairo and two in Mansura, north of the capital, with many fatalities caused by rubber-coated bullets, medics and witnesses said. Seven more people died on Wednesday and Thursday.

Key allies including the United States, Britain and Germany on Friday expressed concern about the violence, with Britain noting that the protesters had "legitimate grievances." Obama's warning came as the United States toughened its line on Mubarak's government, a key Middle Eastern ally, warning it would review billions of dollars in aid to Egypt based on the behaviour of the security forces.

Egypt is one of the world's largest recipients of US aid, receiving $1.3 billion a year in military assistance alone. Obama urged Mubarak to take "concrete" steps towards political reforms, saying he must turn "a moment of volatility" into "a moment of promise".

"I want to be very clear in calling upon the Egyptian authorities to refrain from any violence against peaceful protesters," Obama said, after aides said the White House was readying for any possible political scenarios in Egypt.

Thousands ignored a 6:00 pm (1600 GMT) to 7:00 am curfew in Cairo, Alexandria and Suez on Friday night announced by state television, with many protesters calling on patrolling soldiers to join them. "The army and the people, together!" protesters chanted in front of the Egyptian television building. Soldiers made V-for-victory signs at passers-by near Cairo's opera house more than two hours after the curfew was to go into effect, with some civilians clambering onto their armoured vehicles.

Protesters poured out of mosques after Friday prayers and run rampant through the streets, throwing stones and torching two police stations. Police chased them with batons, firing tear gas, water cannon and rubber bullets.

Demonstrators set fire to the Cairo headquarters of Mubarak's ruling National Democratic Party, with television showing footage of the building which overlooks the Nile still ablaze six hours later.

In Suez, protesters overran a police station, seized weapons and set fire to security force vehicles in fierce clashes.

The demonstrations, inspired by events in Tunisia, have swelled into the largest uprising in Egypt in the three decades of Mubarak's rule, sending shock waves across the region.

At least 27 people have now been killed, hundreds more injured and some 1,000 arrested across the country since the protests broke out on Tuesday. Looting broke out in several parts of Cairo after nightfall, including at offices linked to the government in the upmarket Mohandeseen neighbourhood, with people taking office equipment without any police intervention. Internet connections were cut across Egypt early on Friday, while mobile phone signals were patchy and text messages inoperative, affecting the ability of protesters to communicate with each other.

US media sounded a discordant note, with some newspapers calling for a reevaluation of US-Egyptian relations and others advocating caution. "Rather than calling on an intransigent ruler to implement 'reforms,' the administration should be attempting to prepare for the peaceful implementation of the opposition platform," The Washington Post said in an editorial.

But The Los Angeles Times said that Egypt and its President Hosni Mubarak are strong US allies in a region rife with anti-Americanism. "No one expects the United States to advocate regime change," the paper said. "Nor is it likely to condition the more than $1 billion in economic and military aid it sends to Egypt each year on political reform (though that is a course we would support)."

Concerns were reflected in the financial world as well, with Fitch ratings agency saying it had revised its ratings outlook for Egypt to negative. Continuing unrest would threaten economic and financial performance, it said. In Washington, the Pentagon said the visiting Egyptian army's chief of staff and other top officers departed on Friday, cutting short a planned week-long visit.