Sisi to announce presidential bid 'within days'

A prominent Egyptian journalists with close ties to the military expected Sunday that Egypt's army chief Gen. Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi to declare his bid to run in this country's next presidential elections within days.

"Al-Sisi will announce his decision to run in the presidential elections, possibly even before the presidency invites potential candidates to submit their applications," Yasser Rizq, the chairman of the state-owned Akhbar al-Youm, wrote in a full-page article in Al-Akhbar on Sunday.

Posters of the top general were carried by thousands of people who took to the streets on Saturday to commemorate the third anniversary of the January 25 revolution, which ended the autocracy of longstanding president Hosni Mubarak in 2011.

Interim president Adly Mansour will address the nation later on Sunday amid expectations that he would announce the date of the presidential elections, which will consequently mean the amendment of the transitional roadmap adopted by the army and the nation's political forces and religious establishments following the ouster of elected president Mohamed Morsi on July 3.

The transitional roadmap included the amendment of the 2012 constitution, which was drafted by an Islamist-dominated panel, holding parliamentary elections and then presidential elections.

The amended constitution, which was approved around 20 million Egyptians earlier this month, stipulates that the interim president has the right to change the order of the elections.

In a series of meetings with Mansour, the representatives of the various political forces said they prefer the presidential elections to be held prior to the parliamentary polls.