278 CultureShock! Egypt
Anwar el-Sadat (1918–1981)
Muhammad Anwar el-Sadat succeeded Gamal Abdel Nasser
as the president of Egypt in 1970, and retained the offi ce
until he was assassinated in 1981. He shared the 1978
Nobel Prize for Peace with Israeli prime minister Menachem
Begin. In 1979, Egypt and Israel signed a peace treaty. As
a result, Sadat’s popularity fell dramatically in Egypt due
to internal opposition to the treaty, worsening economic
conditions, and his suppression of resulting public dissent.
He was assassinated by Muslim extremists while reviewing
a military parade commemorating the Arab-Israeli war of
October 1973.Hosni Mubarak (1928– )
Mubarak succeeded Anwar el-Sadat as president of Egypt
on 14 October 1981. He was re-elected in 1987, 1993
and 1999. President Hosni Mubarak was born in the
Al-Menoufi yah governorate, located in the heart of Egypt, in
the Delta area.