Egypt’s Military Council Asks Egyptians to Respect Vote Results

Egypt’s ruling military council urged citizens to accept results of the North African country’s first presidential race since the ouster of Hosni Mubarak last year and said it was standing “at equal distance from all candidates.”

The council, to which Mubarak ceded power following the 18- day revolution which toppled him, called on all voters to take part in choosing their next president “to which hopes of crossing over to progress, prosperity and stability are tied,” according to a statement posted on the council’s official Facebook page.

The statement came after Islamists and some secular groups threatened to take to the streets if alleged attempts to bring back the ousted regime of Mubarak under a different leader succeed. Former Arab League chief Amre Moussa and former premier Ahmed Shafik are two of the leading candidates in the elections which start May 23. Both have served under Mubarak.

To contact the reporter on this story: Dahlia Kholaif in Kuwait at dkholaif@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Shaji Mathew at shajimathew@bloomberg.net