The Egyptian military’s former chief-of-staff, General Sami Anan, who recently announced his bid to run for presidency in the March elections, is being held in a military prison, his lawyer said.
Anan is accused of a series of crimes and violations, including forgery and incitement against the military.
Lawyer Nasser Amin said he had been able to visit his client, who was arrested earlier in the week after declaring his intentions to run against President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.
The executive director for Anan’s election campaign, Ahmed Abed Rabbo, said the arrest and detention of Anan was politically motivated and that el-Sisi was obstructing any chance for genuine presidential elections.
Egypt’s presidential election will take place on March 26-28, with a runoff to be held from April 24-26 if needed.
As of Sunday 2, el-Sisi remained the only aspirant who had formally submitted documents to the electoral authority ahead of a Monday deadline.
The national elections committee last week said it would publish an official list of candidates on 31 January.
The North African country’s electoral body said the results would be announced on 2 April. In the event of a runoff if no candidate secures more than 50 percent of the vote, the results would be announced on 1 May.
