Hosni Mubarak

Egyptian President Mohammad Hosni Mubarak was born in 1928 in Al-Monofeya governorate in northern Egypt.
After high school, Mr. Mubarak joined the Egyptian Military Academy, where he received his bachelor degree in Military Sciences. He also gained a Bachelor in Aviation Sciences form the Air Force Academy in the 1950’s.
Mr. Mubarak held several senior positions in the Egyptian Air Force as a Pilot, Instructor, Squadron Leader and Base Commander.
He was appointed as the head of the Egyptian Military delegation to the USSR in 1964. Later, he became the Commander of the Western Air Force Base, at Cairo West Airfield.
Form 1967 to 1972, Mr. Mubarak was the Head of the Air Force Academy and the Chief of Staff of the Egyptian Air Force. In late 1972, he was appointed as the Commander of the Air Force and Deputy Minister of Military Affairs. In October 1973, he was promoted to the rank of Air Marshall.
Mr. Mubarak was later appointed as Vice President of Egypt in April 1975. Three years later, he became Vice Chairman of the National Democratic Party (NDP).
President
After the assassination of President Anwar Al Sadat in 1981, Mr. Mubarak became President of the Arab Republic of Egypt and the Chairman of the National Democratic Party.
He was re-elected in 1987, 1993, and 1999 for three successive terms. He is expected to run again for office in 2005. This makes him the longest-serving leader in Egypt since Mohammad Ali in the early 19th century, and the longest-serving ruler among other Arab countries.
Mr. Mubarak survived at least six assassination attempts. He is married to Mrs. Suzanne Thabet, who is part Welsh and part Egyptian and they have two sons, Alaa and Gamal as well as two grandsons.
During his career in the military, Mr. Mubarak was credited for improving the air force after the defeat in the Middle East war with Israel in 1967. He was also among the planners of the 1973 Yom Kippur war, which led to the peace agreement with Israel and the return of Sinai to Egypt.
Mr. Mubarak continued Al Sadat’s economic liberalization, but didn’t succeed in introducing economic reforms. Analysts suggest that this was one of the main reasons behind high poverty rates in Egypt.
Regarding politics, Mr. Mubarak chose to maintain friendly ties with Western countries. He succeeded in breaking the isolation imposed on Cairo by Arab nations who opposed to peace with Israel.
At home, he succeeded to end a spate of violence that hit Egypt in the late 1980s and early 1990’s.
Vice President
Mr. Mubarak ignored calls to select a vice-president to ensure an easier succession, as stipulated by Egypt’s constitution. The succession has become a hot issue, especially during his long trip in June 2004 for a back operation in Germany.
Reports that he is grooming his younger son Gamal to succeed him have fueled the opposition but have been strongly denied by the president.
Gamal is the head of the powerful Policy Commission of the ruling National Democratic Party. He is supported by the young reformists in the party and young figures of Industry.
Since the 1952 revolution, Egyptian Presidents have been drawn from the military. Some analysts believe that the military and the security services want this trend to continue. This makes the head of the security services, Ommar Solayman, a serious candidate to succeed Mr. Mubarak.