Egypt's head of armed forces sworn in as first deputy Prime Minister

2013-07-16 35

ROUGH CUT (NO REPORTER NARRATION)

STORY: The head of Egypt's armed forces was sworn in on Tuesday as interim first deputy prime minister, as well as keeping his posts as minister of defense and military production.

The new interim government has been backed by General Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi's army that overthrew elected Islamist President Mohamed Mursi on July 3. According to analysts, the new post is likely to further increase the military's influence over political decisions.

The cabinet swearing-in comes in the wake of deadly clashes in the center of Cairo the night before in which seven Mursi supporters were killed after thousands of them tried to march through the main thoroughfare.

Mursi's opponents had claimed that he ruled undemocratically and that his Muslim Brotherhood used their electoral power and influence to dominate Egypt's transition to democracy following the ouster of Hosni Mubarak in 2011.

The cabinet sworn in is far more diverse than Murs