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Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika resigns after weeks of mbad protests, media reports said.
Bouteflika, who has been in power for 20 years, had already abandoned his plan to run for a fifth term, while opposition to his government was growing.
The powerful Algerian army had asked that the 82-year-old man be declared incapable of performing his task.
The sick ruler suffered a stroke six years ago and has rarely appeared in public since.
How was his resignation announced?
A statement was made on the state APS news agency.
"The president of the republic, Abdelaziz Bouteflika, officially informed the president of the constitutional council of his decision to end his mandate as president of the republic," said the newspaper.
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President Abdelaziz Bouteflika has been at the helm of Algeria since 1999.
State television then announced that it would be done immediately.
How did it happen?
The pressure had been mounting since February, when the first demonstrations were triggered by the announcement by Mr Bouteflika that he would run for a fifth term.
Tens of thousands of people demonstrated across the country on March 1st. Mr. Bouteflika's promise not to fulfill his fifth term if re-elected, as well as a change of prime minister, failed to allay discontent.
The protest leaders also rejected Bouteflika 's offer this week to let him leave the end of his current term – April 28 – as too fast.
It seems that the powerful army has accepted. Its leader, General Ahmed Gaed Salah, said Tuesday earlier: "There is no more room to waste time".
- Who could succeed the sick president of Algeria?
Why did the protests grow?
The demonstrations also called for the overhaul of the entire political system, in which the army plays an important role.
Many protesters are young and say they want a new system of government.
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There were accusations that Mr Bouteflika would be used as a front by "the power" – a group of businessmen, politicians and military officials – to retain their power.
The elections originally scheduled for April 18 have been postponed and the ruling National Liberation Front (FLN) has pledged to hold a national reform conference.
The FLN has been leading Algeria since the country gained independence from France in 1962 after seven years of conflict.
Bouteflika, who came to power in 1999, strengthened his grip after a bloody civil war against Islamist insurgents, which claimed the lives of 150,000 people.
The Speaker of the Upper House of Parliament, Abdelkader Bensalah, is expected to become acting president for three months, until the election of the president.
What was the reaction?
Horns were heard in the streets of the capital, Algiers, as hundreds of people waving flags celebrated their colors.
A protest leader, Mustapha Bouchachi, told Reuters before the announcement that any decision by Bouteflika to resign would not change anything and the protests would continue.
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