Tahminah blog

Egypt probes posters backing spy chief for president

CAIRO (AFP) – Egyptian police are investigating an anonymous poster campaign backing intelligence chief Omar Suleiman to take over the presidency from veteran incumbent Hosni Mubarak, an officer said on Saturday.

The posters, which showed the reticent spy chief waving, said he was the "real alternative" to lead the country, which is due to go to the polls for a presidential election next year.

The poster campaign in the capital mimicked a similar campaign last month in support of Mubarak's son and presumed preferred successor Gamal, carried out by a previously unknown group called the "Popular Campaign to Support Gamal Mubarak."

The police officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the posters in support of Suleiman had been removed. Journalists at two independent newspapers said authorities told them not to publish reports about the poster campaign.

The officer said police had not yet identified the group behind it.

Suleiman, 74, is close to Mubarak and exerts immense influence through his General Intelligence agency. He also acts as the government's pointman on several key foreign policy issues.

Mubarak, 82, has not yet said whether he will stand in next year's election. He underwent gall bladder surgery in March which sparked a spate of rumours about his health that the authorities have struggled to quash.

The veteran president has never named a successor prompting feverish speculation about the political future.

His son, a former investment banker who holds a senior position in the ruling National Democratic Party, has never indicated whether he would like to take over what some fear could become a family dynasty.

Posters have also appeared in support of opposition champion and former UN nuclear watchdog chief Mohamed ElBaradei.

ElBaradei, who has campaigned for constitutional reform, has called for a boycott of the presidential election.