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Egypt’s government resigns: President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi

Egypt’s Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab and his cabinet resigned on Saturday, the presidency said, days after the agriculture minister was arrested over corruption.

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Sisi’s office said that the president had accepted the resignation, but that the ministers would continue to serve until a new body is appointed.

The departure of Mr Mahlab and his cabinet follows the resignation last week of agriculture minister Salah Helal, and his subsequent arrest on suspicion of taking bribes.

Sisi asked the government to carry on in a caretaker role until a new administration is formed in the most populous Arab country.

Mehleb was appointed prime minister previous year after serving as minister of housing.

“The basic reason for the resignation is that the people wanted to dismiss this government, and President Sisi listened to the voice of his people and responded to them”, Lawindi told Xinhua.

The corruption allegations have fed the perception that the government is engaged in the sort of corruption that was widespread in the Mubarak era and was a grievance of the protesters who overthrew him.

The Cabinet’s resignation also illustrated a political dilemma facing el-Sissi, the former armed forces chief who took power during a wave of nationalist fervor after the military’s ouster of Morsi.

Ismail was the Petroleum Minister in Mehleb’s cabinet.

Later the same year, Ismail surprised many observers when he said in a television interview that he had no objections to importing gas from Israel.

Later on saturday, al-Sissi tasked the current oil minister, Sherif Ismail, with forming the new government, according to the broadcaster.

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New parliamentary elections are scheduled to held next month. Egypt is, currently, in a state of political upheaval. Sisi was the commander of the Egyptian army at that time.

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