The military-backed interim government of Egypt has resigned en masse, the country's interim Prime Minister said in a televised address Monday.
Hazem el-Bablawi said that the cabinet "took a decision to offer its resignation to the president of the republic," but did not give a specific reason for the action.
The move was first reported by the state-run newspaper Al-Ahram, and confirmed to Reuters by an unnamed Egyptian official prior to el-Bablawi's address. The official said that the move was done to clear legal hurdles for army chief Field Marshal Abdel Fattah al-Sisi ahead of his declaration of candidacy for Egypt's presidency.
Sisi was serving as defense minister in the government, and would have needed to leave the post before running for president. However, that does not explain why the entire cabinet felt the need to resign as well. The next presidential and parliamentary elections in Egypt are due to take place sometime this year.
The government was sworn in on July 16, less than two weeks after the ousting of former Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi. Its resignation comes amid a host of strikes, including one by public transport workers and garbage collectors. An acute shortage of cooking gas has also been making front page news the past few days.
It was not immediately clear who will replace el-Beblawi, who has often been derided in the media for his perceived indecisiveness and inability to introduce effective remedies to the country's economic woes.
http://www.foxnews.com/world/2014/02/24/egyptian-government-unexpectedly-resigns/
