Egypt's El-Sissi Sworn In As President, Tight Security in Cairo

Egypt's former army chief Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi has been sworn in as president for a four-year term.

An image grab taken from Egyptian state TV shows ex-army chief and newly elected Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi during his swearing-in ceremony on Sunday.-- / AFP - Getty Images
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CAIRO - Egypt's former army chief Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi was sworn in as president for a four-year term Sunday, taking the reins of power in a nation roiled since 2011 by deadly unrest and economic woes.

El-Sissi's inauguration came less than a year after the 59-year-old career infantry officer ousted the country's first freely elected president, the Islamist Mohammed Morsi, following days of mass protests by Egyptians demanding he step down.

Read: Will New President El-Sissi Turn Back Clock on Egypt's Democracy?

El-Sissi took the oath of office before the Supreme Constitutional Court at the tribunal's Nile-side headquarters in a suburb south of Cairo, the same venue where Morsi, now on trial for charges that carry the death penalty, was sworn in two years ago.

An image grab taken from Egyptian state TV shows ex-army chief and newly elected Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi during his swearing-in ceremony on Sunday.-- / AFP - Getty Images

Sunday was declared a national holiday and tight security was enforced by the police and military throughout Cairo.

The Associated Press