Cairo, Jan 31 (IANS): Egypt will re-nominate Ahmed Aboul-Gheit as Secretary General of the Arab League (AL) for a second term, Egyptian Presidential spokesman Bassam Rady said.

President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi sent messages to Arab leaders to express Egypt's intention to re-nominate Aboul-Gheit as the AL chief for another five years, Rady said in a statement on Saturday.

He added that Cairo is looking forward to the leaders' support for this nomination, reports Xinhua news agency.

The spokesman explained that the re-nomination comes within the framework of the great interest that Egypt attaches to the work of the AL which serves Arab peoples.

This characterized the role of Aboul-Gheit during his first term of wise management for the joint Arab action, Rady added.

The first term of the 78-year-old Secretary General will end this June.

He had earlier served as Egypt's Foreign Minister from July 2004 to March 2011.

The AL was formed in Cairo in March 1945 initially with six members: Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and Syria.

Yemen joined as a member in May 1945.

Presently, the regional organisation has 22 members, but Syria's participation has been suspended since November 2011.