Egyptian human rights lawyer and opposition leader Khaled Ali said on Monday he would challenge President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in the 2018 presidential election, as long as he is not barred from the contest.
Ali is the first person to announce he is running against Sisi, a former military commander who led the ouster of former President Mohamed Mursi of the Muslim Brotherhood over four years ago.
Speaking at a press conference, Ali said that he would have a socialist platform, aiming to end austerity and redistribute wealth, and fight terrorism without compromising freedom, Reuters reports.
He criticized Sisi’s administration, accusing it of suppressing freedoms and causing deteriorating economic and security conditions.
“In spite of all the darkness, there is still hope. I call on all segments of society to unite in collective struggle to reclaim this hope and to rescue this nation,” he said.
“It is because of this that I have decided today to launch a presidential campaign.”
However, in an interview with CNBC, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said he will not seek a third term in office, adding that he does not intend to change the constitution and its provision of a two-term presidential limit.
Sisi won 97 percent of the vote in 2014.
Many in Egypt see him as vital to stability in a country where unrest since 2011 has battered the economy.
Under Sisi’s presidency, thousands of dissidents have been jailed. The government has shut down independent media and heavily restricted the conducting of opinion polls.
Ali said earlier on Monday security forces had raided a printing press and seized materials for his campaign, after media reports that he was expected to announce his candidacy.
Security forces accused the owner of the press of printing “documents that harm national security. “
The 45-year-old gained prominence in January when he won a case that nullified a government transfer of two Red Sea islands to Saudi Arabia, a deal that had prompted mass protests.
Egypt’s reclaiming of the islands would be a cornerstone of his campaign, he said. In an interview in June, Ali said the case had swayed the opinion of many former Sisi supporters who oppose ceding sovereign territory.
Ali ran for president in 2012 and came seventh. He was the youngest candidate at 40, the minimum age required to run.
He now leads the leftwing Bread and Freedom Party, at least eight of whose members have been arrested since April on charges including “misusing social media to incite against the state” and insulting the president.
