New Egyptian Cabinet sworn in by military

The head of the military council ruling Egypt swore in a new Cabinet under pressure from protesters demanding faster change and a weeding out of those tied to the ousted regime of President Hosni Mubarak.

The new government led by Prime Minister Essam Sharaf features 12 new faces and two deputy prime ministers. Thirteen other members kept their jobs.

Tension has been rising in Egypt over what many perceive as the army's reluctance to act against the former regime. A few hundred protesters have been camping out in Cairo's central Tahrir Square — the epicenter of the uprising that ended Mubarak's rule on Feb. 11 — to try to keep up pressure on the military council ruling the country.

Field Marshal Mohammed Hussein Tantawi, head of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, told the new Cabinet on Thursday to restore security, prepare for new elections and fight corruption.

The Cabinet is not expected to remain in office for more than four months, with parliamentary elections slated for October or November.

The swearing-in was scheduled for Tuesday, but it was postponed when the prime minister went to the hospital for exhaustion. He checked out the next day.

The Cabinet contains a new foreign minister, Mohammed Kamel Amru. His predecessor held his job for only a few weeks.

In a move likely to upset protesters, Interior Minister Mansour el-Issawi kept his job. Protesters have been calling for his removal, saying he has not done enough to reform the police and security forces.

The Cabinet no longer contains an antiquities minister, a position recently held by Zahi Hawass, who campaigned for repatriation of Egyptian antiques from European museums and was criticized for boosting his own career at the expense of younger archaeologists.

The Supreme Council of Antiquities will now run Egypt's historical sites and report to the prime minister's office.

AP