President Hosni Mubarak returned to Egypt Saturday, three weeks after undergoing surgery in Germany to remove his gallbladder and a benign growth in his small intestine.
Mubarak’s medical team affirmed in its final report that the president has fully recovered from the surgery and is slowly returning to his normal diet. In a statement delivered at the Heidelberg University Hospital, Dr. Markus Buchler, head of Mubarak’s medical team, advised the president to rest for two more weeks before gradually returning to his normal daily activities.
Al-Masry Al-Youm has learned that the president appeared in good condition early yesterday morning, eating breakfast and then walking around the hospital before meeting with members of his medical team to thank them for their efforts. He then left the hospital grounds with his family and took a helicopter to the nearby city of Baden-Baden from which a presidential plane flew him directly to Sharm el-Sheikh.
At Sharm el-Sheikh International Airport, Mubarak was greeted by People’s Assembly Speaker Fathi Surour, Shura Council Speaker Safwat el-Sharif, Al-Azhar Sheikh Ahmed el-Tayeb, Pope Shenouda III, and Mufti Ali Gomaa, in addition to 16 ministers, a number of senior state officials, and officers from the armed forces and police.
At the Arab Summit in Sirte, Libya, officials said that a number of Arab leaders would visit Egypt after the summit to congratulate President Mubarak on his safe return to Egypt.
A diplomatic source reported that one of the top issues on Mubarak’s agenda will be the Middle East peace process. According to the source, Mubarak will meet with Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif and Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit to discuss the results of the Arab Summit.
The source also said that the president will hold a ministerial meeting to review decisions that were taken during his absence, in addition to meeting Ahmed el-Tayeb, the new sheikh of Al-Azhar.
Translated from the Arabic Edition.
