BBC News Middle East 4 February 2011 Last updated at 08:31 GMT Eyewitness Khalid Abdalla in Tahrir Square: "Today is by far the largest number of people we have had" Thousands of protesters are gathering again in the Egyptian capital Cairo to stage a "day of departure" for President Hosni Mubarak. There is an increased army presence in Tahrir Square, after days of unrest that has led to hundreds of casualties. Mr Mubarak is under mounting pressure to resign, with the US now calling for an immediate transition of power. He says such a move would leave Egypt in chaos, but has admitted he is "fed up" with being in power. In his first interview since anti-government protests began, he told ABC News he would like to resign immediately. But he repeated his long-held assertion that the country's Islamist opposition - the Muslim Brotherhood - would fill the power vacuum left by his absence. The protest organisers are demanding that he leave immediately. They have been angered further by the emergence in recent days of pro-Mubarak gangs - many suspected to be plain clothes police - who have attacked anti-government protesters. The protesters say they want to put the "last nail in the regime's coffin". The main prayers are at noon local time (1000GMT). Continue reading the main story At the scene image of Ian Pannell, Ian Pannell, BBC News, Tahrir Square, Cairo Every morning I wake up, the scene outside seems to have changed. Last night there was still a large number of pro-Mubarak supporters gathered on the edge of the square after a violent day. This morning we are looking out on a scene where the army has come out in considerable force and there are no pro-Mubarak supporters to be seen at this point of time. The whole area occupied by those supporters is pretty much controlled by the military - they have put up cordons and set up barricades and it looks like they mean business about bringing some kind of order to this process. There have been people talking about marching on the presidential palace but I just don't think we are going to see that. Protesters are calling for thousands of people to flock to the square to recreate some of the scenes of earlier in the week but physically they are not able to do more than that at this stage. The military are pretty fed up with the scenes they have been watching. It's difficult to see the protesters moving out of the square to try to enforce their demands. The BBC's Jim Muir in Tahrir Square says there is now a far greater military presence. The army is securing the perimeter but on good terms with the protesters, he says, and fears of imminent violence have eased. Defence Minister Gen Mohamed Hussein Tantawi and other military leaders joined the armed forces in the square on Friday. Correspondents also say that there are many more tanks and soldiers out on the streets of second city Alexandria than before. Egypt's health ministry says eight people have been killed and more than 800 injured in the clashes, but the UN estimates that more than 300 people have died since the unrest broke out on 25 January, with about 4,000 hurt. 'Meaningful transition' Egypt's Vice-President Omar Suleiman has appealed for calm and urged the protesters to accept Mr Mubarak's pledge that he will not stand for election again. But it has now emerged that the White House has been in talks with Mr Suleiman about how Egypt can begin making a "meaningful transition" to a democratic government that addresses the aspirations of the Egyptian people. US Vice-President Joe Biden spoke to his Egyptian counterpart on Thursday, say diplomats, a day after Mr Suleiman had similar talks with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. The New York Times suggested that among the proposals was a plan for Mr Mubarak to resign immediately and hand power to a military-backed interim government under Mr Suleiman. Neither the White House nor the state department have directly denied the report. But a spokesman for the President Barack Obama's National Security Council said it was "time to begin a peaceful, orderly and meaningful transition, with credible, inclusive negotiations". "We have discussed with the Egyptians a variety of different ways to move that process forward, but all of those decisions must be made by the Egyptian people," said Tommy Vietor. The BBC's Mark Mardell in Washington says other reports suggest the US plan has already been rebuffed in Egypt, and that the administration has been surprised by the attitude of the military and Mr Suleiman. The reports say officials believe Mr Suleiman was aware of the apparent campaign in recent days to intimidate the opposition, and are now wondering whether he is the right man to lead an interim government, says our correspondent. 'Outrageous' violence The crisis in Egypt has intensified in recent days as supporters of Mr Mubarak have begun attacking protesters in the capital. Stones were thrown on both sides, and there were reports of gunfire, while footage has emerged of vehicles being driven at speed through crowds of protesters. Continue reading the main story Mr Mubarak vowed never to leave Egypt Foreign journalists reporting for several organisations have been attacked, with Mubarak supporters storming a number of Cairo hotels. The army, which has said the protests are legitimate, has been trying to keep the two sides apart but appeared to have failed to control the crowds. Late in the evening, a number of political activists were arrested by military police, as were representatives of Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International. Tens of thousands of people remained in central Cairo after dark on Thursday, some involved in running battles with Mubarak supporters. The attacks have drawn condemnation from Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Spain, as well as UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. "Let me be totally clear: this is outrageous and totally unacceptable, it must stop now," Mr Ban said. In his interview with ABC News, Mr Mubarak denied that his administration was behind the violence of the last two days but said it had troubled him. The BBC's Kevin Connolly in Cairo said very few Egyptians will accept that version of events. But the interview gave a fascinating insight into what is going on in the president's mind as he surveys the chaos in the capital, says our correspondent. Mr Mubarak was speaking in the presidential palace, with his son Gamal at his side. "I never intended to run [for president] again," Mr Mubarak said. 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