Nobel laureate pulls out of president elections in Egypt

Nobel Prize-winning U.N diplomat Mohamed ElBaradei said that in protest over the military's continued hold on power in Egypt, he would be dropping his presidential bid.

Elbaradei helped stimulate democratic demands in Cairo and argued that the former regime had not fallen because the military council in power was simply an extension of ousted Hosni Mubarak's government.

The U.N. diplomat said that until a real democratic system is in place, he would not be running for presidency or any other official position.

ElBaradei was awarded a Nobel Peace Prize for his work as chief of the International Atomic Energy Agency and is hugely influential in Cairo, particularly among liberals.

His announcement could lead to further encouragement for protesters in order to fight for the ousting of the military council from office as Egyptian edge closer to the anniversary of Mubarak's own expulsion.

Parliamentary elections are set to come to an end in coming days during which 79% of the seats have been won by moderate and ultraconservative Islamists.

This shed light on the small base support for candidates such as ElBaradei who secular-like Western-style liberals.