Gen. Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi: Egypt's new strongman

The general is riding a wave of adulation in Cairo after ousting President Mohammed Morsi. Who is he?

Egyptian general
(Image credit: AP Photo/Amr Nabil)

How popular is el-Sissi?

The cult of personality around Egypt's new leader is immediately apparent in Cairo. Posters of him are everywhere, many of them bearing the slogan "The one we can trust." Charismatic and telegenic, el-Sissi is given to passionate and sentimental speeches about patriotism and the glory of Egypt. Fawning profiles in the Egyptian press routinely portray him as Egypt's savior. Yasser Rizq, respected editor of the independent Al-Masry Al-Youm, called him "calm, cultured, religious, level-headed, articulate, and full of pride for Egyptian nationalism," as well as someone who understood "the true nature of moderate Islam." Even the violent clearing of the Muslim Brotherhood sit-ins, with more than 1,000 people killed, did not diminish the adulation for el-Sissi among his supporters.

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