Potential candidates in the Egyptian presidential election (PHOTOS)

Mohamed ElBaradei, is a prominent figure in the recent anti-government protests in Egypt which led to the resignation of President Hosni Mubarak. He was the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) from December 1997 to November 2009. ElBaradei and the IAEA were jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2005. He is one of most influential advocates of democracy in Egypt.

ElBaradei publicly disclosed that he was ready to head a transitional government and many Egyptian opposition groups have requested him to form a transitional government.

Amr Moussa is currently the Secretary-General of the Arab League, a 22-member forum representing Arab nations and a former Egyptian minister for foreign affairs. Moussa declined to contest presidential elections in 2005, despite an appeal by tens of thousands of people.

Following an announcement by President Hosni Mubarak on February 1, 2011 that he would not contest in the next Presidential elections, Moussa told CNN that he would seriously consider being a candidate. On February 11, 2011 Moussa said he had quit his position with the Arab League, further fueling speculations on his bid for Presidential elections.

Ahmed Zewail, an Egyptian-American scientist, was the winner of the 1999 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his work on femtochemistry. He is the Linus Pauling Chair Professor Chemistry and Professor of Physics at the California Institute of Technology. He announced his return to Egypt following the anti-government protests in the country. He expressed his willingness to join a constitutional reform committee along with Ayman Nour, a main opponent for Mubarak in the 2005 presidential elections.

However, Zewail rejected the rumors that he might run for Egyptian presidential election, saying that has no political ambitions and strictly want to continue in the field of science.

Ayman Nour, is the chairman of the El Ghad party and a former member of the Egyptian Parliament. Nour was the first runner-up in the 2005 presidential elections in Egypt. He was imprisoned by the Mubarak government in January 2005, which was severely criticized in the country, besides inviting pressure from other countries for his release. However, he was released later on health grounds in February 2009. During the Egyptian protests, he was injured and hospitalized.

Ahmed Shafik, is currently caretaker prime minister of Egypt and former minister of civil aviation. He served as the commander of the Egyptian Air Force from 1996–2002. As a civil aviation minister, he undertook restructuring of national carrier EgyptAir and was successful in making a turnaround in the company’s performance. He is also known for modernizing the Egyptian airports.