Egypt's Brotherhood to expel Fotouh supporters

Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood spokesperson Mahmoud Ghozlan has said that members who support presidential candidate Abdel Moneim Aboul-Fotouh, a former senior leader in the group, would be expelled. In a telephone interview with Al Jazeera Mubasher-Misr TV on Saturday evening, Ghozlan said: "The group is looking for an appropriate candidate for the position, once we determine who that will be, Brotherhood members will not be allowed to support any other candidate. “We’ve already dismissed a few members for supporting Aboul-Fotouh’s presidential campaign,” he said. “The decision not to support him was an institutional one. Therefore, anyone who does so will be dismissed from the group immediately, since we don’t apply double standards." After the January 25 Revolution, the Brotherhood announced that it would compete in parliamentary elections but would not nominate a member for the presidency. Aboul-Fotouh announced his presidential candidacy in spring 2011 and was expelled along with a number of his supporters. On Sunday, Aboul-Fotouh, a moderate Islamist, reportedly obtained his official presidential nomination papers. The first round of Egypt’s first post-Mubarak presidential poll has been slated for May 23 and 24.