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Islamist sworn in as Egyptian president

ReutersEgypt's first Islamist president, Mohamed Morsi, is sworn into office Saturday.

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Islamist Mohammed Morsi was sworn in on Saturday as Egypt's first democratically elected president, succeeding the ousted Hosni Mubarak.

Morsi, a member of the fundamentalist Muslim Brotherhood, said during his campaign that he would support democracy and women's rights and seek peace with Israel if he won.

The 60-year-old, U.S. trained-engineer said Egyptians aspire "to a better tomorrow, a new Egypt and a second republic" during a ceremony shown on state television, reports said.

Mubarak was the last president of the so-called "first republic," which began when the monarchy was overthrown in 1952.

Morsi's inauguration caps a tumultuous period for Egypt, which last year saw an uprising that ended Mubarak's rule.

Swept out of office during the Arab Spring protests, Mubarak was earlier this month sentenced to life in prison as an accomplice in the killing of unarmed demonstrators during protests against his regime.

In a speech at Cairo University immediately after his swearing in, Morsi said that the Egyptian military would relinquish control of legislative powers it took after it dissolved parliament.

"The elected institutions will come back to take their role, and the great Egyptian army will to go their job to protect the boundaries and security of the country," he said, according to CNN.

The military continues to hold legislative power even after Morsi's inauguration, and will do so until a new parliament is sworn in later this year.

Mubarak's 30-year rule ended in February 2011.