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Military source plays down talk of Tantawi presidential bid Surprise Downtown tour raises popular fears of field-marshal's possible presidential ambitions
@font-face { font-family: "Times"; }@font-face { font-family: "MS 明朝"; }@font-face { font-family: "Cambria Math"; }@font-face { font-family: "Cambria"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: Cambria; }p { margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; font-size: 10pt; font-family: Times; }.MsoChpDefault { font-family: Cambria; }div.WordSection1 { page: WordSection1; } An anonymous military source quoted by online news portal Masrawy on Tuesday denied that Field-Marshal Hussein Tantawi, head of Egypt's ruling military council, has plans to run for the presidency. The assertion follows a surprise appearance by Tantawi in Downtown Cairo on Monday night. According to the source, the field-marshal had been in the area for a private family visit when he decided to take a walk in the street - atypically dressed in civilian attire - in order to hear the views of ordinary citizens. Tantawi's surprise tour, which was heavily covered in the local media, has raised fears among some critics that the military leader - who for two decades served as defence minister under ousted president Hosni Mubarak – may be considering his own presidential bid. Egypt's presidential elections are slated for sometime next year, although an exact date has yet to be set.