Mubarak, (Muhammad) Hosni (Said) (1928– )

Egyptian soldier and politician, president from 1981. He was vice-president to Anwar Sadat from 1975 and became president on Sadat's assassination in October 2001. He continued to pursue Sadat's moderate policies, including support for a peace treaty with Israel, and introduced economic reforms, including a privatization programme, and increased the freedom of the press and of political association, while repressing the growing Islamic fundamentalist movement led by the Muslim Brotherhood and Islamic Jihad. He was re-elected unopposed in 1987, 1993, and 1999 and survived assassination attempts in 1995 and 1999. In 2005 the constitution was amended to allow competition in the presidential elections. But Mubarak was easily re-elected in September 2005, helped by unanimous support from the state-controlled media and alleged polling irregularities.

Mubarak led Egypt and the Arab League's opposition to Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in 1990, providing Egyptian troops to the US-led coalition against Iraq in the Gulf War, and played an instrumental role in arranging the Middle East peace conference in November 1991. He gave support to the US-led war on international terrorism following September 11th, but was critical of the 2003 US war to overthrow Saddam Hussein in Iraq, warning that it would drive many more Muslims to anti-Western militancy and arguing that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict should be first resolved.

Born in Kafr-el Meselha, Mubarak was educated at military academies in Egypt and Moscow (USSR). He commanded the air force 1972–75 and was responsible for the initial victories in the Egyptian campaign of 1973 against Israel, and was promoted to Air Marshall.