Mubarak intends to stay till September: Ahmed Shafiq

Washington, Feb 6 (PTI) Egyptian President HosniMubarak has no immediate plans to relinquish power and intendsto stay in power till September when his term ends, his newPrime Minister Ahmed Shafiq said today.

Mubarak''s ouster has been the central demand of theEgyptian protesters who have taken to the streets in thousandsfor the last 13 years to demand a democratic government.

Though the talks between Egypt''s regime and theopposition began today, the protesters have refused to concedeground, sticking to their demand that Mubarak leavesimmediately.

In an interview to CNN from Cairo, Shafiq assured theworld that no action would be taken against internationaljournalists who have been covering the pro-democracy protestsin the country.

Shafiq said that Mubarak will stay in the position ofPresident till September and is not resigning as of now.

At the same time, Shafiq also acknowledged that talksare on between the government and opposition leaders over thepossibility of Mubarak leaving earlier.