Egypt 's former military chief does n't mince words when he describes what would happen if he wins this month 's presidential vote . In a taped interview broadcast on Egyptian satellite networks Monday , Abdel Fattah el-Sisi vowed to finish off the Muslim Brotherhood if he 's elected , arguing that 's what his country 's people want . And he said he had no choice but to run for President . `` Due to the challenges facing Egypt and the targeting of Egypt from inside and outside of the country ... any responsible patriot has a duty toward his country and its future , and has the opportunity to come forward to protect this country , and this people , and their future , '' el-Sisi said . The second part of the interview is due to air Tuesday . El-Sisi deposed Egypt 's first freely elected leader , President Mohamed Morsy of the Muslim Brotherhood , last year following mass protests against Morsy 's rule . The officer is popular among Egyptians who supported the army 's decision to remove Morsy from power . His supporters see him as the kind of strongman needed to end the turmoil dogging Egypt since a popular uprising ended Hosni Mubarak 's three decades of one-man rule in 2011 . In Monday 's interview , he said there had been two attempts to assassinate him , but that did n't stop him from wanting to run for President . `` I believe in fate , '' he said . `` I am not afraid . '' He appeared relaxed in the interview , talking about his children and saying his wife had urged him to seek election . El-Sisi resigned from his military post in March to run for the presidency . He 'll face just one challenger at the polls , Hamdeen Sabahi , who also had harsh words for the Muslim Brotherhood when he spoke to CNN last month , accusing the group of being `` responsible for bloodshed and sponsoring terrorism in Egypt . '' But Sabahi said he would scrap a controversial law enacted last fall and backed by el-Sisi , which places severe restrictions on demonstration in Egypt . `` I will issue a law that protects and regulates , not prevents , demonstration . And I will release all the innocent people who were convicted according to this unconstitutional law , and particularly college students in Egypt who were angry because of the excessive force used by the police , '' he said . In Monday 's interview , broadcast on the Egyptian satellite channels CBC and ONTV , el-Sisi defended the protest law , saying that `` irresponsible '' demonstrations threaten the state . Egyptians are scheduled to head to the polls to vote for President on May 26 and 27 . Parliamentary elections will be held soon afterward , but dates have not yet been determined , Egypt 's state-run Ahram Online reported Monday . Editors ' Note : This article has been edited to remove plagiarized content after CNN discovered multiple instances of plagiarism by Marie-Louise Gumuchian , a former CNN news editor .
In a TV interview , Abdel Fattah el-Sisi says it was his duty to run for President . He is the head of state and has been in power since 2013. Egyptians will head to the polls to pick a new President later this month .