CAIRO: A group of Egyptian professionals, lawyers and ex-army officers have launched a campaign to collect signatures urging the country's military chief to run for president, just two months after he ousted the first elected leader.

 

Organizer Rifai Nasrallah, a judge, said the goal of the petition titled "complete your good deed" is to make Gen. Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi give in to popular will and run for president, by collecting more than 30 million signatures around Egypt.

 

The petition is modeled after Tamarod, or Rebel, a campaign which spearheaded protests against Islamist President Mohammed Morsi. Tamarod said it collected 22 million signatures demanding Morsi step down.

 

After days of protests, el-Sissi removed Morsi, and appointed an interim civilian leader. Morsi supporters still protest the coup. Presidential elections are expected early 2014.