Egypt swears in Mansour as interim leader after Morsi ousted

The top judge of Egypt's Constitutional Court, Adly Mahmud Mansour, has been sworn in as interim leader, a day after the army ousted President Mohammed Morsi and put him under house arrest.

Mr Mansour said fresh elections were "the only way" forward, but gave no indication of when they would be held.

Mr Morsi, Egypt's first freely elected leader, is under house arrest after what he says was a military coup.

The army said he had "failed to meet the demands of the people".

The upheaval comes after days of mass rallies against Mr Morsi and the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood movement he comes from.

Protesters accused them of pursuing an Islamist agenda and of failing to tackle Egypt's economic problems.

The health ministry says at least 10 people were killed and scores injured in clashes at rival protests across the country overnight. Some 50 people have died since the latest unrest began on Sunday.

Mr Mansour was sworn in as chief justice of the Supreme Constitutional Court on Thursday morning, then, shortly after, he took the oath to become interim head of state, vowing to "preserve the system of the republic, and respect the constitution and law, and guard the people's interests".

He said he would safeguard "the spirit of the revolution" which removed Hosni Mubarak from power in 2011, and "put an end to the idea of worshipping the leader".

Elections would be held based on "the genuine people's will, not a fraudulent one," he said. "This is the only way for a brighter future, a freer future, a more democratic one".

Mr Mansour also praised the military as "the conscience of the nation and the guarantor of its security and safety".

He and the main leftists alliance, the National Salvation Front, later said the Muslim Brotherhood was welcome to take part in the conversation on Egypt's future.

However Gehad el-Haddad, a spokesman for the Muslim Brotherhood, told the BBC that Mr Morsi had been put under house arrest and the "entire presidential team" was in detention.

Mr Haddad's father, senior Morsi aide Essam el-Haddad, and Saad al-Katatni, head of the Brotherhood's political wing, are among those held.

The state-run al-Ahram newspaper reported that arrest warrants had been issued for 300 leaders and members of the Muslim Brotherhood.

The BBC's Shaimaa Khalil in Cairo says the Brotherhood is refusing to acknowledge the change in power and is planning to hold rallies across the country.

Both sides are highly charged, our correspondent says, and confrontation on the streets appears inevitable.

US concern

As Mr Mansour took his oath, military jets flew over the capital trailing the colours of the national flag.

Cairo's Tahrir Square was calm on Thursday morning, though crowds were expected to gather later in the day.

Many had celebrated in Tahrir Square through the night after the army announced on state TV he had failed to meet a deadline to respond to protesters' demands.

The army's roadmap for the post-Morsi era includes:

Suspension of the constitution
A civilian, transitional technocratic government
Supreme Constitutional Court to prepare for presidential and parliamentary elections
A "charter of honour" to be drawn up and followed by national media
The military overthrow has caused alarm among countries which had praised Egypt's democratic progress since the Mubarak era.

US President Barack Obama said he was "deeply concerned" by the events, and called for a swift return to civilian rule.

UK Prime Minister David Cameron said what was needed was for "democracy to flourish and for a genuine democratic transition to take place". All parties must be involved, he said.

UN chief Ban Ki-moon noted the "legitimate concerns" of protesters, but said military inference was always "of concern".

Mr Morsi became Egypt's first Islamist president on 30 June 2012, after winning an election considered free and fair following the 2011 revolution that toppled Hosni Mubarak.

However his term in office was marred by constant political unrest and a sinking economy.

The mass protests at the weekend that led to the army's intervention were called by the Tamarod (Rebel) movement, in response to worsening social and economic conditions.

But there has been a growing sense of discontent since last November, when Mr Morsi issued a controversial constitutional declaration granting himself extensive powers.

His moves to entrench Islamic laws and concentrate power in the hands of the Muslim Brotherhood also alienated liberals and secularists.

From the BBC