Egypt's ex-spy chief runs for president
Source: Sydney Morning herald
Deposed Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak's longtime spy chief officially joined the country's crowded presidential race on Saturday, billing himself as a counterweight to influential Islamist candidates.
Omar Suleiman, Egypt's head of intelligence for more than 18 years, filed his candidacy papers to the Higher Presidential Elections Committee, which was heavily guarded by riot police, military police and elite guards as he arrived.
Mubarak had appointed Suleiman as his first-ever vice president last year in a desperate act to save his crumbling regime two weeks before his ouster in a popular uprising. Suleiman was known as a reclusive member of the old government, and is perhaps best remembered for his sombre televised announcement of Mubarak's resignation on February 11, 2011.
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Suleiman, however, is despised by Egypt's revolutionaries, including Islamists, who comprise the most powerful political blocs.
Read more: http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-world/egypts-exspy-chief-runs-for-president-20120408-1wizu.html
