Image of Egypt's ousted Mubarak appears after death rumours

A social media account supportive of ousted Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak has shared an image of the ageing ex-leader days after unconfirmed reports circulated of his death.

A pro-Mubarak Facebook account shared what it said was a recently taken image of Mubarak days after the death rumours, which also come after his two sons were arrested for alleged stock manipulation.

"President Mubarak is doing well and there is no validity to the reports regarding his death or deterioration of his health," the account said in a post that has garnered over nine thousand reactions.

"But he feels very sad about the arrest of his sons, with all due respect to the Egyptian judicial system," it added.

The New Arab cannot independently verify the authenticity of the report.

On Sunday, social media users across the region shared unconfirmed reports that Mubarak had died, with the topic trending on Twitter.

After three decades in power, Hosni Mubarak was deposed during the 2011 Arab Spring. Since his overthrow, there have been numerous news reports that the 90-year-old has died.

Gamal and Alaa Mubarak were arrested on Saturday and accused alongside three other people of failing to notify the stock market of agreements to acquire majorities in several banks through front companies.

After being arrested in 2011 for a number of crimes, the two sons had several spells in provisional detention. They have been free for the past three years.

Under his father's rule, Gamal headed a key ruling party committee and was long seen as his successor.

Gamal's frequent public appearances and the relatively warm reception he has received from members of the public have drawn the ire of supporters of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.

Yasser Rizq, possibly the closest newspaper editor to Sisi, sternly warned Gamal in a May article against harbouring political ambitions.

He suggested that Mubarak's son may have forged an alliance with the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood to run for president when Sisi's second, four-year term ends in 2022.

Sisi led the 2013 military overthrow of Egypt's first freely elected president - Mohammed Morsi, an Islamist - and has since overseen a massive crackdown on his supporters, jailing thousands of them along with secular activists behind the 2011 uprising.