Mohamed Nasheed said he would return to the Maldives on November 1.
The former president also said he was talking to the military's top brass.
Mohamed Nasheed and Gasim Ibrahim both live in exile.
"Opposition figures that return to the Maldives...we will slit their throats. We will definitely behead them,” said a ruling party supporter.
Mohamed Nasheed said Saudi Arabia supported violent extremism in the Maldives.
Nasheed's decision not to run for president shocked, and even divided, the party he leads.
Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has never sought the spotlight or headlines.
Debate is raging about who should be the main opposition's presidential candidate.
Mohamed Nasheed and Gasim Ibrahim have both sought asylum overseas. Both have said they want to run for office.
The opposition appears divided in its quest to field a unity candidate.
Former president Mohamed Nasheed said he will renegotiate the Maldives’ debt to China, accusing Beijing of dragging Maldives into a debt trap. Nasheed, who won the...
The veteran lawmaker has been described as the ideal candidate because of his efforts to unify the parties and political leaders within the Maldives United Opposition.
The Elections Commission has already threatened to dissolve the MDP, saying that former president Mohamed Nasheed does not qualify as a candidate.
The MDP is part of an opposition alliance which has talked about putting forward a unity candidate in this September’s polls as its leaders are in...
Sir Hugo Swire, a former Foreign Office minister, said that the “politically controlled” Elections Commission was attempting to freeze out the opposition ahead of September’s presidential...
Parliament amended the constitution in 2015, with opposition party backing, to authorise foreign ownership of land or freeholds despite calls for a public referendum.
Former president Mohamed Nasheed, who has already announced his intention to stand in the party primary, is in exile after fleeing from a 13-year prison term.