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Article: Egypt and Saudi: change looms; Political shifts may be in the offing as ageing Mideast leaders give way to a new guard, writes Jeffrey Fleishman.(Dispatches)
- Article from:
- The Sunday Independent (South Africa)
- Article date:
- November 1, 2009
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2009 Independent News & Media PLC. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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THEY are a desert king and a military officer turned president. Drive through their capitals and their images glow from billboards and painted walls, old men with their eyes fixed everywhere, even as whispers grow about who will rise to replace them.
King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak are in their 80s, durable US allies whose governments have crushed political dissent at home while playing leading roles across the Middle East. But these days, talk of succession reverberates as Washington, as well as Riyadh and Cairo, plans how to navigate an era without two of the region's dominant personalities.
The men have given no ...