Presidential Spokesperson Yasser Ali quit his job at the presidency and was announced as the new head of the cabinet's Information and Decision Support Centre (IDSC). A presidential statement issued on Saturday said that Ali will continue with his current position until the end of February. The presidency's media office will be restructured and names of new spokespersons will be announced later. The presidency “thanked Ali for his efforts over the past period". The institution did not mention any reasons for the move nor did it clarify if the decision was made by Ali or President Mohamed Morsi. Ali has acted as the presidential spokesperson since Morsi assumed the presidency in June 2012 after working as the general coordinator of Morsi's presidential campaign. Ali is originally a dermatologist and was once the official spokesperson of the Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party (FJP). He was chosen by Prime Minister Hesham Qandil to lead the IDSC. The centre was founded in 1985 and acts as the Egyptian Cabinet's think tank that aims at provide advice on government decision-making and policies. It also conducts research and analysis on how to improve the socio-economic status of the country. Ali will take over Maged Othman, the former president of IDSC.
