Egypt Military Chief Open To Presidential Run

Sisi as president would mark a return to military establishment rule in the country

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Egypt army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, considered to hold the reins behind the current interim government, left the door open for a presidential run in an interview published Thursday.

Sisi, who led the ouster of democratically-elected Islamist president Mohammed Morsi in July, has become immensely popular to many Egyptians seeking stability after nearly three years of upheaval. Currently the deputy prime minister in the military-backed government, he would be an obvious front-runner in elections expected next year.

Responding to questions about his possible candidacy, he told the Kuwaiti newspaper al-Seyassah: “Would that satisfy all the people? Would that satisfy some of the foreign powers, and does this mean working to find solutions for Egypt’s problems? In any case, let’s see what the days bring.”

A win by Sisi, 59, would mark a return to military establishment rule in Egypt that lasted more than half a century until the ouster of President Hosni Mubarak, a former commander of the Air Force, in 2011.

[Reuters]