Egyptian army chief to run for president

Egypt army chief, Field Marshal Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, says he will run for president days after military authorities approved him as a presidential candidate.

On Thursday, a Kuwaiti newspaper, al-Seyassah, quoted Sisi as saying that he had no alternative but to meet the demands of the Egyptian people and run in the election due in six months.

On January 27, Egypt’s top generals cleared the way for Sisi to declare his candidacy.

The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces had described the move as a mandate and an obligation requested by broad masses of the public.

Shortly after the announcement, Egypt’s Deputy Prime Minister Ziad Bahaa-Eldin resigned from his post in protest at Sisi’s candidacy.

On July 3, 2013, the army ousted Mohamed Morsi, who was the first democratically-elected president of Egypt.

Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood accuses Sisi of staging a coup against Morsi.