20110202
Xinhua
CAIRO, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- U.S. ambassador to Egypt Margaret Scobey talked with Egypt's prominent dissident Mohammed ElBaradei through telephone Tuesday to discuss the latest developments in Egypt as massive anti-regime demonstrations continued into eighth day, AL Arabya TV reported.

Earlier Tuesday, ElBaradei called on President Hosni Mubarak to step down and leave Egypt in exile, as tens of thousands of protesters flooded the Tahrir Square in downtown Cairo.

"If the president steps down, dialogue will start with the government," ElBaradei said in an interview with Al Arabya TV, highlighting the importance of peaceful demonstrations after the military said it will never use violence against the protestors.

ElBaradei, the former chief of the UN nuclear watchdog International Atomic Energy Agency who returned to Egypt last Thursday, claimed he could lead an interim government after Mubarak steps down.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said Monday that the United States wants to see an orderly transition to a more responsive government in Egypt, saying it was not calling on Mubarak to step down.