Egypt election run-off sparks protests The campaign headquarters of one of Egypt's two presidential hopefuls was stormed by a mob and set alight on Monday night, as thousands protested the results of the first round of the country's presidential election. The elections committee had earlier in the day confirmed that Ahmed Shafiq, who was named prime minister by ousted president Hosni Mubarak in the dying days of his regime, would face the Muslim Brotherhood's Mohamed Morsi in the second-round run-off. It is a contest between the two most polarising and controversial figures in the race. The committee also said it had rejected appeals against the first round of voting that had alleged a number of violations of election law, including mistakes in counting votes. Thousands took to the streets of Egypt's two biggest cities, Cairo and Alexandria, in the hours after the announcements. Later in the night, a group of protesters broke into and vandalised Mr Shafiq's office in the Cairo residential district of Dokki before setting it alight, the state news agency reported. An official in the fire service confirmed the blaze had been extinguished and said there were no casualties. Trouble later flared in Cairo's Tahrir Square where activists said unknown assailants had attacked a group of protesters. Rocks flew in scenes reminiscent of clashes in the square when the uprising against the Mubarak regime first erupted. Mahmoud Momen, a 19-year-old student, held aloft a picture of Shafiq with a black X daubed over his face as he took part in a Cairo march against the result. "Neither Brotherhood or feloul," he said, invoking the word used in Egyptian slang to refer to politicians who served in the Mubarak administration. We want someone who represents the square. Similar protests erupted in Alexandria on Egypt's northern Mediterranean coast, and in Port Said, Ismailia and Suez, cities along the Suez Canal east of Cairo. In Alexandria, about 2,000 protesters marched through the city, tearing up Shafiq and Morsi election posters they encountered along their way. The demonstrations were a reminder that instability and street protests will remain a factor in the political manoeuvring that will take place in the weeks leading up to the June 16 run-off vote. Military rule is due to end when the army hands power to the new president on July 1. On Saturday, judges are expected to announce a verdict in the trial of Mr Mubarak, with many warning that an acquittal or light sentence could lead to further demonstrations. With tensions high on the streets, Mr Morsi and Mr Shafiq will try to rally potential supporters in what is likely to be a frenetic three-week media war that will officially kick off on Tuesday. The two candidates are permitted to spend no more than the Egyptian equivalent of $333,000 on the campaign. But each can count on the mobilisation and resources of huge armies of loyalists. Mr Morsi will access the organisational muscle of his 80-year-old Islamist movement, which has a decades-old presence in each of the country's 27 provinces and many of its state and civil society institutions. Mr Shafiq will be backed by the administrative and economic patronage networks of the outlawed National Democratic party of Hosni Mubarak, the deposed president, and its allies in the security forces.