An announcement by military chief Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi that he is resigning as Egypt's defense minister and planning to run for president has drawn mixed reactions from the powers that was once united in opposition to ousted president Mohamed Morsi.

Nasserist politician Hamdeen Sabbahi has said he welcomes the presidential candidacy of former army chief Abel-Fattah El-Sisi.

Cairo - Egyptian army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said on Wednesday he had quit the military to run for president and vowed to rid the country of "terrorism" almost nine months after he toppled its elected leader.

Former chief-of-staff Sedki Sobhi was sworn in by interim president Adly Mansour on Thursday as new defence minister after former Egyptian army chief Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi officially resigned the post earlier in the day.

The trial of former President Hosni Mubarak, his sons and four other defendants involving the alleged seizing of 125 million EGP (U.S. $18 million) worth of financial allocations was postponed Thursday by the Cairo Criminal Court to May 21.

WHILE much of the world’s attention is focused on Crimea and the hunt for the missing Malaysia Airlines plane, Middle Eastern eyes will turn to the 25th annual summit of the Arab League, which opened this morning in Kuwait City.

A woman was subjected to wolf whistles and "attempts to rip her clothes off" as she walked through the grounds of an Egyptian University.

A call centre service to receive complaints from citizens was initiated on Monday by interim Prime Minister Ibrahim Mehleb at the Information and Decision Support Centre (IDSC), a statement from the cabinet said.

Egypt’s interim government signed two agreements with the Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development (AFESD) on Monday to finance projects in the electricity sector, a statement from the cabinet said.

Egypt's Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab is currently visiting Upper Egypt for the first time since his appointment as head of cabinet, Al-Ahram's Arabic news website reported.

The Syrian conflict takes centre stage at an Arab summit starting Tuesday in Kuwait, where a regional rift over Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood has been kept off the agenda.

Tourism Minister Hesham Zaazou said the incident of raping a British tourist dates back to 6 March and that he was not informed about it until Sunday.

Presidential candidate Hamdeen Sabbahi’s campaign spokesperson Amr Badr said there is a difference between objective criticism and “smear campaigns,” and they will not tolerate the latter.

Trade balance deficit reached LE18.04 billion in December 2013, compared to LE22.95 billion in December 2012, marking 21.4 percent decrease.

Ongoing debate between Egypt and Ethiopia over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam project is heightening concern over the future of relations between the two countries.

The Cairo Court for Urgent Matters announced Monday that it would decide whether to categorise the Sinai militant group Ansar Beit Al-Maqdis as a terrorist organisation on April 14.

Archeologists in the historic city of Luxor, Egypt have unveiled two massive ancient statues of Pharaoh Amenhotep III to the public.

The trial of 20 Al-Jazeera journalists accused of aiding or joining the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood was adjourned for a third time on Monday, with the defendants' request for bail denied by the court.

Egypt's interim President Adly Mansour travelled to Kuwait on Monday ahead of the Arab League summit scheduled to take place in the Gulf state over the next two days.

Military Spokesperson Ahmed Mohamed Ali called for reporting against whoever abuses the armed forces or name of Field Marshal Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, defense minister, within electoral campaigns for presidency.

North Cairo Criminal Court ordered Sunday for an “experts committee” to be formed to re-examine and evaluate the assets of former President Hosni Mubarak’s chief of staff Zakaria Azmi, who is being tried on charges of corruption and illicit profiteering, reported Youm7.