Egypt
changing
 |
| Defence Minister Abdul Fattah al-Sisi (left) announced the changes to Egypt's army leadership |
Seventy
generals in the Egyptian armed forces are to be retired, the government has
announced.
The move
comes weeks after President Mohammed Mursi replaced the defence minister and
the chief of staff.
However,
six of the generals will keep their positions on the Supreme Council of the
Armed Forces (Scaf).
Some
analysts say Mr Mursi is asserting his authority over the army. There has so
far been little adverse reaction from the military establishment.
Defence
Minister Gen Abdul Fattah al-Sisi, who was appointed in President Mursi's
military reshuffle last month, announced the changes.
Power
struggle
In August,
Mr Mursi had replaced Field Marshal Mohammed Hussein Tantawi with Gen Sisi as
both armed forces chief and defence minister.
Gen
Tantawi's number two, Gen Sami Enan, was also replaced.
Both men
were prominent members of Scaf, the military body that ran Egypt after the fall
of President Hosni Mubarak after mass protests in February 2011.
In July,
Scaf formally handed over power to Mr Mursi, Egypt's first ever democratically
elected president.
At the same
time as the reshuffle, Mr Mursi issued a decree voiding an interim
constitutional declaration from June that gave Scaf broad executive and
legislative powers.
However, it
was also announced that Field Marshal Tantawi and Gen Enan would stay on as advisers
to Mr Mursi.
Some
analysts have suggested that at least some members of the Scaf must have been
consulted in advance of such important changes to the military hierarchy.
Generals
Mohamed Assar, Mukhtar el-Mullah, Mahmoud Nasr, Fouad Abdel Hay, Mohamed Emara,
and Mamdouh Shahin, will keep their membership of Scaf.
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