Day of departure

There is an increased army presence in Cairo's Tahrir Square after unrest that has led to hundreds of casualties.

After Friday prayers were held in a relaxed atmosphere, the crowd started chanting for Mr Mubarak to go.

Mr Mubarak has said he is "fed up" with being in power but is resisting mounting pressure to resign as he says it will leave Egypt in chaos.

In his first interview since anti-government protests began, he told ABC News he would like to resign immediately. But he repeated that the country's Islamist opposition - the Muslim Brotherhood - would fill the power vacuum left by his absence.

'Silent majority'

The BBC's Jim Muir in Tahrir Square says tens of thousands have now gathered there, although with the checkpoints the movement into the square is more a trickle than a flood.

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The pro-Mubarak element seems to have disappeared at least for the moment and the army has a cordon between the two sides. It is holding a ring and letting people in. The numbers are building up and of course people here are expecting a big day.
The mood is very relaxed. I've got hundreds of people around me who have spent a long time here, many of them are sleeping because they are exhausted, others are sitting chatting in the sunshine.
There was a false alarm a short while ago. When the protesters think they are coming under attack, they bang on railings with metal bars to attract attention and the lads start running to that spot. But the sense of imminent attack has now eased.
Most people here do have confidence in the army as a kind of neutral institution.
And they do feel this is coming to a climax and I think they're feeling the shift within the Egyptian ruling leadership.

The stronger army presence secured the perimeter and the soldiers appear to be on good terms with the protesters.

The demonstrators chanted: "The army and people are united."

Defence Minister General Mohamed Hussein Tantawi and other military leaders joined the armed forces in the square.

The secretary general of the Arab League, Amr Moussa, who has not ruled out standing for president, is also reported to be in Tahrir Square.

Thorough checks for weapons were carried out ahead of Friday prayers, during which one cleric praised the "revolution of the young" and declared: "We want the head of the regime removed."

Our correspondent says the mood is relaxed but it is not quite the carnival atmosphere that existed before Wednesday - when pro-Mubarak gangs attacked anti-government protesters - and people are watchful.