Moussa: Sisi will run at end of month

After meeting with Defense Minister Abdel Fattah al-Sisi Tuesday, former presidential candidate Amr Moussa said that the field marshall would announce his candidacy at the end of this month.

Moussa told state-run daily Al-Ahram that Sisi had “made up his mind,” and would run.

Since the beginning of January, Egyptian politics, and popular rumors have been dominated by a simple question: "will he or won’t he?" Most observers believe that Sisi will run, and win, the upcoming presidential elections. Sisi himself has given hints that he will run.

There are a few steps, official and unofficial, that Sisi would still have to take before beginning a campaign. Officially, he would have to resign from the military in order to be an eligible candidate.

Earlier on Tuesday, former member of Parliament Mostafa Bakry tweeted that Sisi would announce “within hours” that he would run for president, before resigning as defense minister at a cabinet meeting Wednesday.

Sisi was also abruptly promoted to field marshall, becoming the first solider to hold the army’s highest rank without having fought in a war.

If he runs, he will likely have to present an electoral platform, as well as reorganize the security services, leaving his position as defense minister. Chief of Staff Sedky Sobhy is rumored to be Sisi’s choice for his replacement.

If he moves into the presidential palace, it will be key for Sisi to develop a political apparatus consisting of old and new parties, and various political personalities. Moussa, who heads the Conference Party, did not say what the purpose of his meeting with Sisi was, Al-Ahram added.