Reports predict President Hosni Mubarak will step down as Egypt’s armed forces issue "communiqué number one"

In the seventh day of the Egyptian Revolution, the nation seems to be heading towards victory…

COMMUNIQUE NUMBER ONE
In a remarkable statement, Egypt's armed forces said on Thursday they have started taking "necessary measures to protect the nation" and "support the legitimate demands of the people."
  
Egyptian television interrupted all programming to present footage of a panel of serious military officers reading out a statement they described as "communiqué number one" of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces.
  
"Based on the responsibility of the armed forces and its commitment to protect the people and its keenness to protect the nation... and in support of the legitimate demands of the people," the army "will continue meeting on a continuous basis to examine measures to be taken to protect the nation and its gains and the ambitions of the great Egyptian people," it said.

It was remarkable that the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces convened in the absence of President Hosni Mubarak and VP Omar Suleiman.

MUBARAK TO STEP DOWN TONIGHT?!
Meanwhile, recently appointed Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq told Britain's BBC that President Hosni Mubarak, who's set to address the nation during a speech within hours, may step down and the situation in the country will be clarified soon.

In a related statement, the new secretary general of the ruling party in Egypt Hossam Badrawi said that Mubarak could respond to the people's demands by Friday. "I expect the president to respond to the demands of the people, because what matters to him in the end is the stability of the country. The post is not important to him," Badrawi told BBC.

Badrawi did not specify that he was referring to Mubarak stepping down, but a senior military officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP: "We are awaiting orders that will make the people happy."

In the same context, Reuters news agency quoted an Egyptian army commander as telling protesters in Tahrir Square "Everything you want will be realized."

NBC television network also reported that Mubarak will step down on Thursday night.

CIA Director Leon Panetta told lawmakers there was a "strong likelihood" that Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak would step down later on Thursday. Asked about media reports that the Egyptian leader was about to relinquish power, Panetta said: "I got the same information you did, that there's a strong likelihood that Mubarak may step down this evening."