High In The Air

Al Arabiya television reported on Friday that President Hosni Mubarak and his family had left Cairo from a military airbase in the suburbs and had travelled to the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.

By about 1 p.m., state television was reporting that thousands had gathered around the state television building and were threatening violence against employees who entered. Their rage had been stoked when, after a day of mounting official signals that he was about to make an exit, the president failed to convey any such conclusion in either its tone or literal meaning.

US-based Al-Hurra TV reported that Mubarak was flying toward the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and was expected in Dubai in an hour.

“The Armed forces are committed to sponsor the legitimate demands of the people,” the statement declared, and it vowed to ensure the fulfillment of its promises “within defined time frames with all accuracy and seriousness and until the peaceful transfer of authority is completed toward a free democratic community that the people aspire to.” And the military further promised the protesters — “the honest people who refused the corruption and demanded reforms” — – immunity from any prosecution or “security pursuit.”