Hosni Mubarak resigned as Egyptian president today and handed control to the military, driven from the top after 30 years of autocratic rule.

Seconds after the nationally televised announcement by Vice President Omar Suleiman, celebrations broke out in Cairo's central Tahrir Square, ground zero of the protest movement, which was packed with some 250,000 protesters. They greeted the news with shouts of "Egypt is free! Egypt is free!"

Car horns honked and people waved Egyptian flags, sang the national anthem and danced in conga lines.

"The Egyptian people made history today!" Hala Abdel Razik, a retired English teacher, told AOL News' Sarah Topol in Tahrir Square. "We still have a long way to go to fix things. We have to start all over again. It's the young people's role, with the help of older people. We're open to new scenarios."

Nobel Peace laureate and pro-democracy campaigner Mohammed ElBaradei said it was the "greatest" day of his life. "The country has been liberated after decades of repression," the former head of the International Atomic Energy Agency said, according to The Associated Press. He said he hoped for a "beautiful" transfer of power.

Mubarak had desperately attempted to cling to power over the past 18 days of continuous protests. He had offered pro-democracy campaigners numerous concessions, including not running in elections in September. On Thursday, after word spread that he would resign, he went on national TV and announced he was handing only some of his powers to Suleiman.

But a surge in protests today apparently helped force the military to finally boot the 82-year-old autocrat from office. Hundreds of thousands of demonstrators gathered in city squares across the nation and -- for the first since the protests began -- staged rallies outside the president's many palaces.

Activists also besieged the building that houses state TV and radio in Cairo, in an attempt to end its broadcast of round-the-clock Mubarak propaganda. More than 1,000 people had formed a human barricade in front of the building.

Throughout it all, the military stood by, guarding key pieces of infrastructure but keeping its earlier promise not to fire on protesters.

Before the resignation, demonstrators for the first time staged rallies outside the president's many palaces today. Reports by the BBC and Reuters said Mubarak had left Cairo for his seaside palace at the Red Sea resort of Sharm El Sheikh, far from the angry crowds in the capital.

"What are you waiting for?" one protester yelled at soldiers stationed outside Mubarak's main residence, Oruba, in northern Cairo, according to The Associated Press. "Did you sign an oath and pledge your allegiance to the president or the people?" shouted another member of the 1,000-strong crowd.

Tahrir Square was crammed with a crowd that rivaled the quarter-million figure of the biggest protests over the past 18 days. And at least 100,000 people had gathered in the main square of Egypt's second biggest city, Alexandria.

Hours before Mubarak's resignation, the armed forces offered their firm backing for Mubarak in a statement issued at midday. In "Communique No. 2," the Armed Forces Supreme Council -- a group of top generals -- backed the partial transfer of power.

The announcement promised that the much-hated emergency laws that have been in force since Egypt's authoritarian ruler took power in 1981 after Anwar Sadat's assassination -- and which give police almost unlimited powers of arrest -- would be scrapped once protests ended.

The armed forces also declared that they would support "legislative amendments required to conduct a free and honest presidential election," and called on protesters to return to work and "preserve the interests and property of our great people."

Although the future was not known, jubilation ruled for the moment.

"I'm excited, euphoric!" Nirvana Said, a training manager who has camped out in Tahrir Square since Jan. 25, told AOL News' Topol. "Now that the military controls everything, there will be no people on the square tomorrow. It's finished!" •

########################################

Mubarak’s departure & What it means

Pro-democracy protesters celebrated in cities across Egypt on Friday after forcing President Hosni Mubarak to step down. Mubarak, who had announced Thursday night in a televised speech that he would keep his title and give some of his authority to Vice President Omar Suleiman, suddenly handed over power to the military and left Cairo. (Latest developments)

Mubarak's resignation, which ends three decades of authoritarian rule, raises numerous questions about what led to his decision, what happens next and what the transition means. Here are some answers.

What does the change in Egypt mean for the United States?

Mubarak's resignation and the uncertainty facing Egypt are serious issues for American foreign policy. Mubarak's Egypt was a longstanding American ally that cooperated with the United States on a long list of issues, ranging from combating terrorism to assisting U.S. military operations in the Middle East to helping secure shipping lanes to facilitating Arab-Israeli negotiations. The tectonic shift going on in Egypt, and in the broader Middle East, may have dramatic effects on the future price of oil, the extent of American regional influence, Israeli security, and a host of other key questions. With Egypt in a state of transition, the United States might see some of its interests suffer and some remain secure. Whatever ultimately happens in Egypt, the process has only just begun. •

###################################################

Blessings to you and yours in these uneasy and uncertain times. -Missygirl*