Egypt's cabinet, under attack, meets for first time (Reuters)

CAIRO (Reuters) – Egypt's new cabinet met for the first time on Wednesday with security high on its agenda and under attack from the Muslim Brotherhood and others who want it purged of ministers appointed by ousted president Hosni Mubarak.

In preparation for polls that military rulers have promised to hand over power to civilian rule in six months, activists announced the forming of a new political party on Wednesday.

The Brotherhood and other political groups have called for another million-man-march on Friday to fill Cairo's central Tahrir Square, which was the nerve-center for opposition to Mubarak's 30-year iron rule, to call for a new cabinet.

Banned under Mubarak and playing an increasingly active role in Egyptian political life since the 18-day uprising that toppled Mubarak, the Brotherhood wants the lifting of emergency law, freeing of political prisoners and a purge of the cabinet.

The cabinet will discuss security issues in the post-Mubarak era and the provision of basic foods and subsidies on Wednesday, political sources said. Despite political pressure, there are unlikely to be further changes in the cabinet, they added.

Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, head of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces that is running the Arab world's most populous nation, swore in 10 new ministers on Tuesday, some who had opposed Mubarak, but key portfolios were unchanged.

"The main ministries of defense, justice, interior and foreign remain unchanged, signaling Egypt's politics remain in the hands of Mubarak and his cronies," senior Brotherhood member Essam el-Erian told Reuters, reacting to the new line-up.

In the run-up to presidential and parliamentary elections, a committee is amending the constitution to dismantle the apparatus that propped up Mubarak's rule and political parties are being registered ahead of the polls.

"EGYPT THE FREE"

A former diplomat, Abdallah Alashaal, was quoted by MENA news agency on Wednesday as saying he was setting up a new political party "Egypt the Free" to participate in the polls.

"The establishment of the party comes within the framework and desire to make a real representation of the youth of January 25 revolution during the coming period," Alashaal said.

The Brotherhood and youth groups are anxious that the emergency law, imposed after the assassination of Anwar Sadat by Islamist soldiers from his army in 1981, be lifted but some Cairo residents were not so sure.

"For now, they shouldn't cancel the emergency law because there are thousands and thousands of thugs out there but ultimately, yes, they have to remove it because police were mistreating lot of people through it," Somaya Mohamed, a retiree, told Reuters on Wednesday.

"I don't see anything wrong with the politics of (prime minister) Ahmed Shafiq, he has a white track record," he said, adding: "I think the youth is simply against anything that the president said that's all, they wanted to put an end to him and whatever he said."

Another priority facing the cabinet is getting the nation back to work and to stop the protests and strikes that have damaged an economy that had already been damaged by the turmoil of the revolution which erupted on January 25.

The Egyptian stock market, which closed two days after the uprising started, has announced that it will stay shut until next week.

(Writing by Peter Millership)

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Egypt's military to move on cabinet, march expected (Reuters)

CAIRO (Reuters) – Egypt's new military rulers were expected to unveil a new cabinet on Tuesday with pro-democracy protesters planning a march to pressure the generals to purge the old guard of deposed president Hosni Mubarak.

Leaks of the reshuffle to state media showing key ministers, such as foreign, finance and interior, unchanged were greeted with a sour reaction by reformists who want a fresh cabinet with technocrats to run the Arab world's most populous nation.

As the military struggled to organize a handover to power with free and fair elections in six months after the downfall of Mubarak, its neighbor Libya was engulfed by a fierce crackdown on a mounting revolt to the 41-year rule of Muammar Gadaffi.

EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton was in Cairo on Tuesday to offer international aid to help the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces to get the country back to work and to secure a peaceful, swift and orderly transition of power.

"I am certainly looking at ways for us to offer support," Ashton told reporters, after a visit by British Prime Minister David Cameron and U.S. officials, offering help to the rulers of this key American ally that has a peace treaty with Israel.

The Islamist Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt's most powerful political organization which has a growing influence in the post-Mubarak era, said it was not offered a portfolio. Others referred to in leaks of a reshuffle defended their appointments.

BROTHERHOOD, OTHERS WANT PURGE

Others involved in the movement that toppled Mubarak's 30-year rule with an 18-day uprising signaled their displeasure at the plans by the council, led by Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, who has been defense minister for two decades.

Millions turned out for Egypt's uprising, centered around Cairo's Tahrir Square, to protest about corruption, repression and poverty, whipping up a revolution that toppled Mubarak, a former air force commander who took over after Anwar Sadat was assassinated in 1981.

The military dissolved parliament, suspended the constitution and promised presidential and parliamentary elections in six months but reformists are urging wider reforms and the lifting of emergency law imposed after Sadat's killing.

A group of youths called the People's National Movement for Change will stage a march from Talaat Harb Square to Tahrir Square at 2 p.m. on Tuesday to demand the resignation of Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq's interim government.

The protesters said they would give the cabinet until Wednesday to resign and will call for a big sit-in in Tahrir on Thursday and a march on Friday.

"We will march in protest to demand the resignation of Shafiq's government and abolishing emergency law and the trial of Mubarak and his family," the movement's Mohamed Fahmy said, adding the group also demanded setting a new minimum wage.

The military, facing protests over wages and conditions that sprang out of the nation's new found post-Mubarak freedom, has effectively banned strikes and industrial action to get the nation back on its feet and to restart the damaged economy

(Writing by Peter Millership)

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Maliki fills power, trade and other Iraq cabinet jobs (Reuters)

BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Iraq's parliament approved eight new ministers on Sunday but Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has yet to decide who will hold sensitive security posts in the cabinet such as defense and interior.

Maliki's new government was approved in late December after nine months of political wrangling but he left 10 cabinet posts with acting leaders, keeping the Defense Ministry, which runs the army, Interior, which controls the police, and National Security for himself temporarily.

Iraq is trying to solidify its nascent democracy in the face of a stubborn insurgency nearly eight years after the U.S.-led invasion that toppled dictator Saddam Hussein, before U.S. troops complete their withdrawal by year's end.

Parliament approved new electricity and trade ministers, two key positions covering provision of basic services and food, the focus of recent protests in Baghdad and the provinces.

The new power minister, Raad Shallal, has worked for the ministry since 1987 and holds a masters degree in engineering.

Intermittent electricity is one of Iraqis' biggest gripes.

Current production is only 7,000 megawatts, about 5,000 megawatts short of demand, acting Electricity Minister Hussain al-Shahristani said on Saturday as he announced a plan to give Iraqis 1,000 kilowatt-hours of free power each month.

The new trade minister is Khairalla Hasan, a Kurdish veterinarian with 20 years' experience in trade in Iraq's semi-autonomous northern Kurdish region.

Food and power have been at the heart of numerous recent street protests, which seem likely to grow with the approach of summer, when temperatures rise above 50 degrees Celsius.

Maliki also announced his picks for the posts of women's affairs, tribal affairs, municipalities, civilian community affairs, national reconciliation and a minister of state without portfolio, and said he would submit other nominees to parliament within days.

"I would like to assure members of parliament I will bring up the security ministers to parliament very soon to be approved," Maliki told lawmakers.

(Reporting by Suadad al-Salhy; writing by Ahmed Rasheed; editing by Tim Pearce)

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Maliki fills power, trade and other Iraq cabinet jobs (Reuters)

BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Iraq's parliament approved eight new ministers on Sunday but Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has yet to decide who will hold sensitive security posts in the cabinet such as defense and interior.

Maliki's new government was approved in late December after nine months of political wrangling but he left 10 cabinet posts with acting leaders, keeping the Defense Ministry, which runs the army, Interior, which controls the police, and National Security for himself temporarily.

Iraq is trying to solidify its nascent democracy in the face of a stubborn insurgency nearly eight years after the U.S.-led invasion that toppled dictator Saddam Hussein, before U.S. troops complete their withdrawal by year's end.

Parliament approved new electricity and trade ministers, two key positions covering provision of basic services and food, the focus of recent protests in Baghdad and the provinces.

The new power minister, Raad Shallal, has worked for the ministry since 1987 and holds a masters degree in engineering.

Intermittent electricity is one of Iraqis' biggest gripes.

Current production is only 7,000 megawatts, about 5,000 megawatts short of demand, acting Electricity Minister Hussain al-Shahristani said on Saturday as he announced a plan to give Iraqis 1,000 kilowatt-hours of free power each month.

The new trade minister is Khairalla Hasan, a Kurdish veterinarian with 20 years' experience in trade in Iraq's semi-autonomous northern Kurdish region.

Food and power have been at the heart of numerous recent street protests, which seem likely to grow with the approach of summer, when temperatures rise above 50 degrees Celsius.

Maliki also announced his picks for the posts of women's affairs, tribal affairs, municipalities, civilian community affairs, national reconciliation and a minister of state without portfolio, and said he would submit other nominees to parliament within days.

"I would like to assure members of parliament I will bring up the security ministers to parliament very soon to be approved," Maliki told lawmakers.

(Reporting by Suadad al-Salhy; writing by Ahmed Rasheed; editing by Tim Pearce)

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Palestinian cabinet quits in reform move by Abbas (Reuters)

RAMALLAH, West Bank (Reuters) – The Palestinian cabinet resigned on Monday, in an apparent attempt by President Mahmoud Abbas to show his willingness for change in the wake of a popular uprising in Egypt.

The new cabinet will be charged with preparing for elections that have been announced for later this year, and will also be expected to boost the government's profile as it seeks international backing in its standoff with Israel.

Hamas, which has sour relations with Abbas, says it will not take part in the ballot or recognize the results -- a decision that will make it hard for Abbas to stage a credible vote.

The latest reshuffle had been demanded by Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, who has spearheaded efforts to create institutions for a Palestinian state. The Western-backed Fayyad will retain his post and select new ministers, officials said.

"The cabinet resigned today and the formation of a new cabinet will take place as soon as possible," Ali Jarbawi, minister of planning, told Reuters.

Financed by international donors and engaged in security coordination with Israel, the Palestinian Authority has a limited mandate in the occupied West Bank. It lost control of the Gaza Strip to Hamas Islamists in a 2007 civil war.

Abbas's credibility has been further sapped by stalled talks with Israel on a deal to establish an independent state, and the Palestinians have increasingly looked to build international consensus to try to pressure Israel into making concessions.

Hamas, which rejects permanent co-existence with Israel, said the reshuffle was motivated by Abbas's fears that the Palestinians would follow the lead of angry Egyptians.

"Unless Mahmoud Abbas carries out serious security and political reforms, his authority will be subject to the wrath of the Palestinian people," Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said in the Gaza Strip.

PUBLIC CRITICISM

Although several anti-Abbas protests bubbled up in the West Bank after the upheaval began in Egypt on January 25, he has not faced large-scale demonstrations in the territory, whose economy has strengthened significantly in recent years.

However, 75-year-old Abbas has faced public criticism over the functioning of his government. Of the 24 posts in the outgoing administration, only 16 were staffed. Two ministers resigned and six are marooned in Gaza.

Abbas said the new cabinet should focus on "strengthening the preparedness of the national institutions for the establishment of the state of independent Palestine," according to the official news agency WAFA.

On Saturday the Palestinian Authority said it would call legislative and presidential elections by September.

The last election was in 2006, when Hamas won a majority in the parliament. It shared power with Abbas, but relations rapidly soured and the following year, the Islamists seized control of Gaza, leaving the PA in charge of the West Bank.

(Additional reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi in Gaza and Ali Sawafta in Ramallah, Editing by Maria Golovnina)

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Maliki fills power, trade and other Iraq cabinet jobs (Reuters)

BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Iraq's parliament approved eight new ministers on Sunday but Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has yet to decide who will hold sensitive security posts in the cabinet such as defense and interior.
Maliki's new government was approved in late December after nine months of political wrangling but he left 10 cabinet posts with acting leaders, keeping the Defense Ministry, which runs the army, Interior, which controls the police, and National Security for himself temporarily.
Iraq is trying to solidify its nascent democracy in the face of a stubborn insurgency nearly eight years after the U.S.-led invasion that toppled dictator Saddam Hussein, before U.S. troops complete their withdrawal by year's end.
Parliament approved new electricity and trade ministers, two key positions covering provision of basic services and food, the focus of recent protests in Baghdad and the provinces.
The new power minister, Raad Shallal, has worked for the ministry since 1987 and holds a masters degree in engineering.
Intermittent electricity is one of Iraqis' biggest gripes.
Current production is only 7,000 megawatts, about 5,000 megawatts short of demand, acting Electricity Minister Hussain al-Shahristani said on Saturday as he announced a plan to give Iraqis 1,000 kilowatt-hours of free power each month.
The new trade minister is Khairalla Hasan, a Kurdish veterinarian with 20 years' experience in trade in Iraq's semi-autonomous northern Kurdish region.
Food and power have been at the heart of numerous recent street protests, which seem likely to grow with the approach of summer, when temperatures rise above 50 degrees Celsius.
Maliki also announced his picks for the posts of women's affairs, tribal affairs, municipalities, civilian community affairs, national reconciliation and a minister of state without portfolio, and said he would submit other nominees to parliament within days.
"I would like to assure members of parliament I will bring up the security ministers to parliament very soon to be approved," Maliki told lawmakers.
(Reporting by Suadad al-Salhy; writing by Ahmed Rasheed; editing by Tim Pearce)
View the original article here

Maliki fills power, trade and other Iraq cabinet jobs (Reuters)

BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Iraq's parliament approved eight new ministers on Sunday but Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has yet to decide who will hold sensitive security posts in the cabinet such as defense and interior.

Maliki's new government was approved in late December after nine months of political wrangling but he left 10 cabinet posts with acting leaders, keeping the Defense Ministry, which runs the army, Interior, which controls the police, and National Security for himself temporarily.

Iraq is trying to solidify its nascent democracy in the face of a stubborn insurgency nearly eight years after the U.S.-led invasion that toppled dictator Saddam Hussein, before U.S. troops complete their withdrawal by year's end.

Parliament approved new electricity and trade ministers, two key positions covering provision of basic services and food, the focus of recent protests in Baghdad and the provinces.

The new power minister, Raad Shallal, has worked for the ministry since 1987 and holds a masters degree in engineering.

Intermittent electricity is one of Iraqis' biggest gripes.

Current production is only 7,000 megawatts, about 5,000 megawatts short of demand, acting Electricity Minister Hussain al-Shahristani said on Saturday as he announced a plan to give Iraqis 1,000 kilowatt-hours of free power each month.

The new trade minister is Khairalla Hasan, a Kurdish veterinarian with 20 years' experience in trade in Iraq's semi-autonomous northern Kurdish region.

Food and power have been at the heart of numerous recent street protests, which seem likely to grow with the approach of summer, when temperatures rise above 50 degrees Celsius.

Maliki also announced his picks for the posts of women's affairs, tribal affairs, municipalities, civilian community affairs, national reconciliation and a minister of state without portfolio, and said he would submit other nominees to parliament within days.

"I would like to assure members of parliament I will bring up the security ministers to parliament very soon to be approved," Maliki told lawmakers.

(Reporting by Suadad al-Salhy; writing by Ahmed Rasheed; editing by Tim Pearce)

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Pakistan's Cabinet resigns

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari's office said Zardari's goal is to have "a mean, lean and aboveboard Cabinet."Shrinking the Cabinet is an effort to cut spending, improve performance, officials sayGovernment spokesman: The move has nothing to do with protests elsewherePakistan's Cabinet is one of the world's largest, with more than 50 ministers
Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- Pakistan's Cabinet ministers submitted their resignations to the prime minister on Wednesday as part of the government's plan to dissolve and reappoint a smaller Cabinet, the prime minister's press secretary told CNN.
"All the ministers have tendered their resignation," said Shabir Anwar. "The resignations will now be sent to the president for acceptance."
Pakistan's ruling party announced plans to shrink the Cabinet last week. Party officials insisted Friday the decision was not a move to preempt an uprising similar to those which have taken place in Egypt and Tunisia.
The plan to shrink the Cabinet is an effort to cut spending and improve the government's performance, government spokesman Qamar Zaman Qaira told CNN.
"This has nothing to do with the situation in Egypt and the Middle East," Qaira said. "This is something the people and political parties demanded."
A statement by the office of Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari last week said Zardari's goal is to have "a mean, lean and aboveboard Cabinet."
The resigning ministers will continue their duties until a new Cabinet has been appointed, government officials said.
Pakistan's ruling party will begin the selection process once the president officially accepts Wednesday's resignations, Anwar said. "The party leadership will choose the new ministers after consulting with other political parties," he said.
Zardari will have significant influence in choosing the new ministers since he heads the ruling Pakistan People's Party.
Analysts say some of the the more than 50 ministers who resigned will be reappointed to their old posts.
"The interior minister is not going anywhere," an official from Interior Minister Rehman Malik's office told CNN. The official asked not to be named because he is not authorized to speak to the media.
Wednesday's resignations come amid mounting pressure on the Pakistani government from several fronts to downsize one of the largest Cabinets in the world and improve performance.
More than 50 Cabinet members, critics say, is far too many for a country that's facing a crippling economic crisis. Last month, Pakistan's leading opposition party gave an ultimatum to the government: reduce the size of its Cabinet or face public protests.
Last year Pakistani lawmakers passed a constitutional amendment that limits the number of federal ministers following the next parliamentarian elections in 2013.
The government's plan to downsize its Cabinet is an effort to change the perception that it's losing its hold on power, said political analyst Aysia Riaz. "I think it's all that pressure that's making the government reinvent itself at this stage, to do whatever it can to hold onto power."
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Pakistan's Cabinet quits in reshuffle

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari's office said Zardari's goal is to have "a mean, lean and aboveboard Cabinet."Shrinking the Cabinet is an effort to cut spending, improve performance, officials sayGovernment spokesman: The move has nothing to do with protests elsewherePakistan's Cabinet is one of the world's largest, with more than 50 ministers
Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- Pakistan's Cabinet ministers submitted their resignations to the prime minister on Wednesday as part of the government's plan to dissolve and reappoint a smaller Cabinet, the prime minister's press secretary told CNN.
"All the ministers have tendered their resignation," said Shabir Anwar. "The resignations will now be sent to the president for acceptance."
Pakistan's ruling party announced plans to shrink the Cabinet last week. Party officials insisted Friday the decision was not a move to preempt an uprising similar to those which have taken place in Egypt and Tunisia.
The plan to shrink the Cabinet is an effort to cut spending and improve the government's performance, government spokesman Qamar Zaman Qaira told CNN.
"This has nothing to do with the situation in Egypt and the Middle East," Qaira said. "This is something the people and political parties demanded."
A statement by the office of Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari last week said Zardari's goal is to have "a mean, lean and aboveboard Cabinet."
The resigning ministers will continue their duties until a new Cabinet has been appointed, government officials said.
Pakistan's ruling party will begin the selection process once the president officially accepts Wednesday's resignations, Anwar said. "The party leadership will choose the new ministers after consulting with other political parties," he said.
Zardari will have significant influence in choosing the new ministers since he heads the ruling Pakistan People's Party.
Analysts say some of the the more than 50 ministers who resigned will be reappointed to their old posts.
"The interior minister is not going anywhere," an official from Interior Minister Rehman Malik's office told CNN. The official asked not to be named because he is not authorized to speak to the media.
Wednesday's resignations come amid mounting pressure on the Pakistani government from several fronts to downsize one of the largest Cabinets in the world and improve performance.
More than 50 Cabinet members, critics say, is far too many for a country that's facing a crippling economic crisis. Last month, Pakistan's leading opposition party gave an ultimatum to the government: reduce the size of its Cabinet or face public protests.
Last year Pakistani lawmakers passed a constitutional amendment that limits the number of federal ministers following the next parliamentarian elections in 2013.
The government's plan to downsize its Cabinet is an effort to change the perception that it's losing its hold on power, said political analyst Aysia Riaz. "I think it's all that pressure that's making the government reinvent itself at this stage, to do whatever it can to hold onto power."
View the original article here