President Hosni Mubarak Saturday pledged to hold fair elections and welcomed any "societal interaction" but warned against what he described as setbacks. In an address marking the 28th anniversary of the Sinai Liberation Day, Mubarak said: "Nationas' future is not made by slogans, nor is their destiny fulfilled by miscaculated steps." Egypt will hold parliamentary elections later this year, and presidential vote next year. In his televised address, Mubarak said that Egypt was doing its best to create an indpendent Palestinian state with eastern capital as its capital. Earlier in the day, Mubarak attended the celebrations held by the Egyptian Army on the Sinai Liberation Day in the coastal city of Ismailia, the official Middle East news Agency (MENA) reported. Egypt marks the Sinai Liberation Day every year on April 25. It is the date when the Israeli forces left Taba, the last plot of land in the Sinai Peninsula. His appearance was his first public appearance since his return from Germany where he had a gallbladder operation last month.
