Thousands of protesters in the Egyptian cities of Cairo, Alexandria and Suez have defied a nighttime curfew and continued with demonstrations demanding an end to Hosni Mubarak's 30-year presidency.

Military armored vehicles rolled onto the streets of the capital on Friday night in a bid to quell the protests, but buildings have been set alight, and violent clashes continue after a day of unprecedented anger.

A building belonging to the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP) was torched, and reports of looting have also emerged in numerous government buildings.

Nobel winner arrested

Nobel Peace laureate Mohamed ElBaradei was under house arrest Friday, Egyptian security officials said.

One of the country's leading pro-democracy advocates, ElBaradei, took to the streets for the first time since his return to Egypt on Thursday.

Police used batons to beat some of ElBaradei's supporters, who surrounded him to protect him. They were soaked with water cannons and eventually were forced to take refuge in a mosque, where they were trapped by riot police.

He later attempted to march again with supporters chanting "peaceful, peaceful," however he was placed under house arrest. (Source: BBC)

Story Date: January 29, 2011