Egypt to continue leading Arab League

CAIRO -- The Arab League chose a new chief Sunday after a last-minute switch of candidates by Egypt to avert a divisive vote for a post that is usually determined by consensus.

The 22-member league endorsed Egypt's current foreign minister, Nabil Elaraby, to replace Amr Moussa, who is planning to run for president of Egypt. Moussa, 74, held the Arab League post for a decade.

The secretary-general post has traditionally been held by Egypt, home of the league's headquarters. But this year, Qatar also put a candidate forward.

Egypt had nominated a member of deposed President Hosni Mubarak's party. In an 11th-hour change, it substituted Elaraby, 76, a diplomat who backed the uprising that ousted Mubarak. He has had an international career and has earned respect among Arab countries.

Qatar's foreign minister, Hamad bin Jassim, said Egypt's choice of Elaraby "encouraged" his country to withdraw its nominee, diplomat Abdul Rahman bin Hamad al-Attiyah of the Gulf Cooperation Council.

"This is the right choice, which encouraged us to support it," bin Jassim said.

Egypt's original candidate was Mustafa el-Fiqqi, a member of Mubarak's ruling party who resigned after Egypt's popular uprising began on Jan. 25. Reform activists had opposed his nomination.

Meanwhile, the head of the Coptic Orthodox Church, Pope Shenouda III, called on his followers Sunday to end a weeklong sit-in in front of a government building on the Nile after a mob attacked the protesters and their supporters, injuring 78.

The sit-in aimed to draw attention to the plight of Christians, who have been the target of Muslim fundamentalists since Mubarak was forced from office.