U.S. Increases Pressure to Speed Up Mubarak Departure

The Obama administration is increasingly counting on the Egyptian military to contain violence in the country and help accelerate President Hosni Mubarak’s departure, as the U.S. braces for growing protests.

President Barack Obama’s advisers have concluded that the longer Mubarak remains as Egypt’s head of government, the more strident the Egyptian political opposition will become, according to specialists on the region consulted by the administration. The U.S. is pressing through multiple channels for Mubarak to surrender power soon.