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An estimated 110,000 Egyptians took part in rallies elsewhere in the country, the security source said, achieving the demonstrators' ambition of a million nationwide.
There were no incidents of violence reported as crowds of all ages and classes gathered in light-hearted mood after the army promised not to fire on protesters, saying they had legitimate grievances.
Intelligence chief Omar Suleiman, who Mubarak appointed on Monday as his first vice president in three decades in office, said he had instructions to open a dialogue with the opposition but the offer was firmly rejected.
Opposition groups said there could be no negotiations with the regime until Mubarak leaves, and former UN nuclear watchdog chief Mohamed ElBaradei, who some consider as a potential figurehead for the protest movement, said Friday has been set as "departure day" for the veteran president.
Mubarak was to give "an important statement" to the nation late on Tuesday, state television reported without elaborating.
US President Barack Obama called a high-level meeting at the White House to discuss the crisis as the New York Times reported that he had sent a message to Mubarak through a veteran former diplomat urging him to announce that he would not stand in elections due in September.
The angry eight-day revolt -- in which an estimated 300 people have died and more than 3,000 been injured -- has sent jitters throughout the Middle East.
King Abdullah II of Jordan sacked his government after weeks of demands for change, Yemen's president summoned parliament ahead of a "day of rage" called for Thursday, and a Facebook group of Syrian youth called for a peaceful revolution to start on Friday.
A committee of Egyptian opposition groups, which includes both ElBaradei and the powerful Muslim Brotherhood, pledged that there would be no negotiations with the regime until Mubarak "leaves."
Men, women and children swarmed Cairo's streets from early morning, joining hundreds who had spent the night in Tahrir Square -- epicentre for the protests -- in tents or sleeping on the grass.
Protester Madiha Shalaby, 38, held aloft a sign in the square calling on the "US to support Egyptians."
Basma Mahmud, 30, said: "We are waiting for them to say he has left, that he is on a plane. This is our dream."
Chants of "Revolution! Revolution until victory!" rang out amid the festive atmosphere in the square.
Soldiers in tanks encircled the square but they held no fear for the happy crowds.
An army statement to "the great people of Egypt" on Monday said "your armed forces, acknowledging the legitimate rights of the people," stress that "they have not used and will not use force against the Egyptian people."
The long-feared police were nowhere to be seen on the streets.
The army's position drew praise from Washington as Defence Secretary Robert Gates spoke by telephone with his Egyptian counterpart, Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, on Tuesday.
"Thus far the Egyptian military has acted with professionalism and restraint," Pentagon spokesman Colonel Dave Lapan told reporters.
The US and British governments both kept in touch with opposition leaders as well as the government, as British Prime Minister David Cameron called for an "orderly transition to a broad-based government, including opposition figures," and Washington ordered the evacuation of all non-essential staff.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was among the officials who was to brief Obama at the 3:30 pm (2030 GMT) meeting at the White House.
Writing in New York Times, senior Senator John Kerry said it was time for Mubarak to say clearly he will step down.
"It is not enough for President Mubarak to pledge 'fair' elections, as he did on Saturday," said Kerry, who is chairman of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
"The most important step that he can take is to address his nation and declare that neither he nor the son (Gamal) he has been positioning as his successor will run in the presidential election this year."
It was the same message that the paper reported had been conveyed to Mubarak through veteran former diplomat Frank Wisner.
ElBaradei told Al-Arabiya television that Mubarak should leave by Friday.
"What I have heard (from protesters) is that they want this to end, if not today (Tuesday), then by Friday maximum," he said.
But he called for Mubarak to be spared prosecution. "I'm for a safe exit for President Mubarak," the Nobel peace laureate told US-funded Al-Hurra television.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay said that, according to unconfirmed reports, a total of 300 people had died in the unrest so far, with casualties "mounting on a daily basis."
Foreigners continued to throng Cairo airport for flights out as several governments announced they were sending charter aircraft to assist the exodus.
Germany widened its travel warning to cover all of Egypt, including Red Sea resorts like Sharm el-Sheikh which have so far largely been spared the protests that have affected larger cities.
With 14.7 million visitors in 2010 and revenues estimated at about 13 billion dollars, tourism is a key source of income for Egypt, and its new Finance Minister Samir Radwan acknowledged the gravity of the situation.
"I wouldn't say there is a chaos (but) there is a crisis, there is no doubt about it," Radwan told the BBC.
International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn said the IMF was ready to help Egypt, adding rising food prices could have "potentially devastating consequences."
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There were no incidents of violence reported as crowds of all ages and classes gathered in light-hearted mood after the army promised not to fire on protesters, saying they had legitimate grievances.
Intelligence chief Omar Suleiman, who Mubarak appointed on Monday as his first vice president in three decades in office, said he had instructions to open a dialogue with the opposition but the offer was firmly rejected.
Opposition groups said there could be no negotiations with the regime until Mubarak leaves, and former UN nuclear watchdog chief Mohamed ElBaradei, who some consider as a potential figurehead for the protest movement, said Friday has been set as "departure day" for the veteran president.
Mubarak was to give "an important statement" to the nation late on Tuesday, state television reported without elaborating.
US President Barack Obama called a high-level meeting at the White House to discuss the crisis as the New York Times reported that he had sent a message to Mubarak through a veteran former diplomat urging him to announce that he would not stand in elections due in September.
The angry eight-day revolt -- in which an estimated 300 people have died and more than 3,000 been injured -- has sent jitters throughout the Middle East.
King Abdullah II of Jordan sacked his government after weeks of demands for change, Yemen's president summoned parliament ahead of a "day of rage" called for Thursday, and a Facebook group of Syrian youth called for a peaceful revolution to start on Friday.
A committee of Egyptian opposition groups, which includes both ElBaradei and the powerful Muslim Brotherhood, pledged that there would be no negotiations with the regime until Mubarak "leaves."
Men, women and children swarmed Cairo's streets from early morning, joining hundreds who had spent the night in Tahrir Square -- epicentre for the protests -- in tents or sleeping on the grass.
Protester Madiha Shalaby, 38, held aloft a sign in the square calling on the "US to support Egyptians."
Basma Mahmud, 30, said: "We are waiting for them to say he has left, that he is on a plane. This is our dream."
Chants of "Revolution! Revolution until victory!" rang out amid the festive atmosphere in the square.
Soldiers in tanks encircled the square but they held no fear for the happy crowds.
An army statement to "the great people of Egypt" on Monday said "your armed forces, acknowledging the legitimate rights of the people," stress that "they have not used and will not use force against the Egyptian people."
The long-feared police were nowhere to be seen on the streets.
The army's position drew praise from Washington as Defence Secretary Robert Gates spoke by telephone with his Egyptian counterpart, Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, on Tuesday.
"Thus far the Egyptian military has acted with professionalism and restraint," Pentagon spokesman Colonel Dave Lapan told reporters.
The US and British governments both kept in touch with opposition leaders as well as the government, as British Prime Minister David Cameron called for an "orderly transition to a broad-based government, including opposition figures," and Washington ordered the evacuation of all non-essential staff.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was among the officials who was to brief Obama at the 3:30 pm (2030 GMT) meeting at the White House.
Writing in New York Times, senior Senator John Kerry said it was time for Mubarak to say clearly he will step down.
"It is not enough for President Mubarak to pledge 'fair' elections, as he did on Saturday," said Kerry, who is chairman of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
"The most important step that he can take is to address his nation and declare that neither he nor the son (Gamal) he has been positioning as his successor will run in the presidential election this year."
It was the same message that the paper reported had been conveyed to Mubarak through veteran former diplomat Frank Wisner.
ElBaradei told Al-Arabiya television that Mubarak should leave by Friday.
"What I have heard (from protesters) is that they want this to end, if not today (Tuesday), then by Friday maximum," he said.
But he called for Mubarak to be spared prosecution. "I'm for a safe exit for President Mubarak," the Nobel peace laureate told US-funded Al-Hurra television.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay said that, according to unconfirmed reports, a total of 300 people had died in the unrest so far, with casualties "mounting on a daily basis."
Foreigners continued to throng Cairo airport for flights out as several governments announced they were sending charter aircraft to assist the exodus.
Germany widened its travel warning to cover all of Egypt, including Red Sea resorts like Sharm el-Sheikh which have so far largely been spared the protests that have affected larger cities.
With 14.7 million visitors in 2010 and revenues estimated at about 13 billion dollars, tourism is a key source of income for Egypt, and its new Finance Minister Samir Radwan acknowledged the gravity of the situation.
"I wouldn't say there is a chaos (but) there is a crisis, there is no doubt about it," Radwan told the BBC.
International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn said the IMF was ready to help Egypt, adding rising food prices could have "potentially devastating consequences."
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