1 February 2011 Last updated at 16:58 ET

Profile: Hosni Mubarak

Egypt's 82-year-old President Hosni Mubarak, in power for almost 30 years, has been Egypt's great survivor.

Few expected that the little-known vice-president who was elevated to the presidency in the wake of Anwar Sadat's 1981 assassination would hold on to the country's top job for so long.

Mr Sadat was assassinated by Islamist militants at a military parade in Cairo, and Mr Mubarak was lucky to escape the shots as he sat next to him.

Since then, he has survived at least six assassination attempts - the narrowest escape shortly after his arrival in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, in 1995 to attend an African summit, when his limousine came under attack.

Besides his knack for dodging bullets, the former air force commander has also managed to keep a hold on power by positioning himself as a trusted Western ally and fighting off a powerful opposition movement at home.

But with domestic unrest, his regional clout waning, his health failing, and his succession unclear, many questioned how long Mr Mubarak would be able to carry on.

Then in a televised address on 1 February, following mass protests in Cairo and other cities, Mr Mubarak announced he had decided not to stand for re-election in September.

Early life

Born in 1928 in a small village at Menofya province near Cairo, he insists on keeping his private life out of the public domain.

Married to a half-British graduate of the American University in Cairo, Suzanne Mubarak, and with two sons, Gamal and Alaa, the Egyptian president is known to lead a strict life with a fixed daily schedule that starts at 0600.

Never a smoker or a drinker, he has built himself a reputation as a fit man who leads a healthy life.

In his younger days, close associates often complained of the president's schedule, which began with a workout in the gym or a game of squash.

Muhammad Hosni Sayyid Mubarak was sworn in on 14 October 1981, eight days after the Sadat assassination.

Despite having little popular appeal or international profile at the time, the burly military man has used his sponsorship of the issue behind Sadat's killing - peace with Israel - to build up his reputation as an international statesman.

Emergency rule

In effect, Hosni Mubarak has ruled as a quasi-military leader since he took power.

For his entire period in office, he has kept the country under emergency law, giving the state sweeping powers of arrest and curbing basic freedoms.

The government argues the draconian regime has been necessary to combat Islamist terrorism, which has come in waves during the decades of Mr Mubarak's rule - often targeting Egypt's lucrative tourism sector.

He has presided over a period of domestic stability and economic development that means most of his fellow countrymen have accepted his monopolisation of power in Egypt.

In recent years, Mr Mubarak has felt for the first time the pressure to encourage democracy, both from within Egypt, and from his most powerful ally, the United States.

Many supporters of reform doubted the veteran ruler's sincerity when he said he was all for opening up the political process.

Leading up to his declaration not to stand again for the presidency, the US had heaped pressure on him to stand aside, calling for an "orderly transition" of power to a more democratic system.

Mr Mubarak has won three elections unopposed since 1981, but for his fourth contest in 2005 - after a firm push from the US - he changed the system to allow rival candidates.

Critics say the election was heavily weighted in favour of Mr Mubarak and the National Democratic Party (NDP). They accuse the Egyptian leader of presiding over a sustained campaign of suppressing opposition groups, most notably the Muslim Brotherhood.

The length of his tenure, along with his age and possible successors, had all been sensitive subjects in Egypt until January's mass protests allowed the Egyptian people to find a voice.

People around Mr Mubarak say his health and vigour belie his age - although a couple of recent health scares have been a reminder of his mortality.

Rumours about the president's health gathered pace when he travelled to Germany in March 2010 for gall bladder surgery. They flare every time he misses a key gathering or disappears from the media spotlight for any conspicuous length of time.

However much Egyptian officials try to deny them, they keep circulating, with reports in the Israeli and pan-Arab media.

The days of mass protests in Egyptian cities prompted Mr Mubarak to finally name a vice-president. On 29 January, intelligence chief Omar Suleiman was elevated to the role in what has been seen as an attempt by Mr Mubarak to bolster his support in the military.

Until then there had been no obvious successor but opposition groups had feared his son, 40-year-old former investment banker Gamal Mubarak, was being groomed for a kind of dynastic inheritance dressed up as a democratic transition.

Gamal insisted he had no ambition to be president, but he had been moving steadily up the ranks of the NDP, becoming a leading advocate of economic and political reform.

Historians point out that every president since the revolution of 1952 has come from the military, and Gamal's civilian credentials may have given him trouble in gaining the support of that important constituency.

With unrest in the streets and elections due at the end of the year, decisions will have to be made.

In the past, Mr Mubarak has said he will continue to serve Egypt until his last breath. In his speech on 1 February, he said: "This dear nation... is where I lived, I fought for it and defended its soil, sovereignty and interests. On its soil I will die. History will judge me like it did others."