(Image source: The New York Times)

BY CHRISTINA HARTMAN

A collective resignation amid increasingly violent demonstrations. Egyptian Prime Minister Essam Sharaf and his entire cabinet have offered to resign in what The New York Times is calling a “crisis of legitimacy” for the ruling military council.

RT posted this video of a crackdown at Tahrir Square, where more than 30 people were killed in fresh demonstrations over the weekend. This is where more than 50,000 protesters gathered earlier this year before the ouster of president Hosni Mubarak.

According to Bikya Masr -- a blog with reporters in Egypt -- demonstrators are calling for so-called “million-man protests” throughout this week. Among their demands...

“...the complete reform of the Interior Ministry including the dissolution of the Central Security Forces directorate and the prosecution of ‘those who have polluted their hands with the blood of Egyptians.’”

Protesters say they want real reform, and say the interim ruling military council has no intention to hand over power. Reporting from Cairo, NBC’s Richard Engel tells MSNBC’s Tamron Hall -- the cabinet’s resignation offer won’t actually mean much at all to the protesters in the streets.

“Today that government said that it would step down, but the military will remain in charge. That's what these people are opposing. They are coming out in the streets right now to demand that the military itself, not the civilian functionaries that operate underneath, they want the generals to step aside.”

London’s The Guardian live-blogged updates as the news of the cabinet’s resignation broke. Jack Shenker appears to corroborate NBC’s report, saying the offer won’t be enough for protesters.

“The sentiment that this is far too little, far too late, is one shared by most in the square. … it appears the only way that a change of government will calm the unrest is if it is accompanied by the departure of [the military council] from political power. … As Mubarak found to his cost, once public momentum is building against you, every concession to your critics seems to only galvanise them further.”

And from the protesters’ perspective, that analysis appears spot-on. Al Jazeera spoke with a University of Cairo professor who says not even the parliamentary elections slated for next week will be enough.

“Every time someone dies it gives us more energy to continue and more people are on the square. We want an election as part of a bigger package. Elections as a cosmetic reform, just like Mubarak used elections is not good enough for us now. What we want is transition to civilian rule. This is includes parliamentary elections, presidential elections...”

But among media observers, The Telegraph’s David Blair is a rare voice of cautious optimism for next week’s elections -- writing...

“Assuming a credible outcome, the parliamentary elections could serve as a useful safety valve for public discontent. For the first time, Egypt’s largest opposition movement, the Muslim Brotherhood, will be openly contesting the polls... But the Field Marshal will need to reassure Egyptians that the army really will stand aside when an elected leadership emerges.”