Egypt's president, Hosni Mubarak, was officially pronounced the winner of the country's first contested presidential election last night, gaining a fifth six-year term.
Official results gave the incumbent 88.6% of the vote, and put the turnout at 23% of the 32 million registered voters.

Ayman Nour of the Ghad, or "Tomorrow", party, who faced regular harassment after declaring his candidacy, won 7.3% of the vote.

Before the result came in, the Israeli prime minister, Ariel Sharon, phoned Mr Mubarak to congratulate him.

The United States, which had been pressing for a free and fair contest in a country where referendums and parliamentary elections have usually been marred by fraud, has so far refrained from comment, saying it is waiting to see the final outcome.