New York, June 5 : Bringing a close to her 17-month old campaign for the White House, New York Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton is all set to endorse Senator Barak Obama as Democrat nominee for the President post, aides have said.

The New York Times quoted Hillary’s aides as saying that her decision came after Democrats urged her on Wednesday to leave the race and allow the party to coalesce around Obama.

Howard Wolfson, one of Hillary’s chief strategists, and other aides said that she would express support for Obama and party unity at an event in Washington on Saturday.

“Senator Clinton will be hosting an event in Washington, D. C., to thank her supporters and express her support for Senator Obama and party unity,” Wolfson said.

One adviser said Hillary would concede defeat, congratulate Obama and proclaim him the party’s nominee, while pledging to do what was needed to assure his victory in November.

Hillary’s decision came after a day of conversations with supporters on Capitol Hill about her future after Obama had clinched the nomination.

She had, in a speech after Tuesday night's primaries, suggested that she wanted to wait before deciding about her future, but in conversations on Wednesday, her aides said, she was urged to step aside.

“We pledged to support her to the end,” Representative Charles B. Rangel, a New York Democrat who has been a patron of Hillary since she first ran for the Senate, said in an interview.

“Our problem is not being able to determine when the hell the end is,” he added.

Hillary’s decision came as some of her most prominent supporters, including former Vice President Walter F. Mondale, announced that they were now backing Obama.

“I was for Hillary - I wasn’t against Obama, who I think is very talented. I'm glad we made a decision and I hope we can unite our party and move forward,” Mondale said.

One of Hillary’s aides said they were told that except for her senior advisers, there was no reason to report to work after Friday, and that they were invited to Clinton's house for a farewell celebration. (ANI)