Egypt's former army chief Abdel- Fattah al-Sisi, who was sworn in as new president on Sunday, said there is no reconciliation with anyone who "committed crimes or inciting violence" against Egyptians.
Addressing a ceremony on Sunday evening at Cairo's Qubba presidential palace, Sisi said he is looking forward to " reconciliation with all citizens but except those committed crimes against the nation or using violence as a methodology," clarifying that "those who shed blood of the Egyptian people have no place in this course."
The military-oriented new president, who led the ouster of former Islamist leader Mohamed Morsi last July, won almost 97 percent of the votes in last week's presidential election. Morsi's Islamist backers led by the currently-blacklisted Muslim Brotherhood claim the move was as a "military coup."
Sisi said he will work for a comprehensive development, combating terrorism and improving security.
However, some worried that Sisi's rule will be reproduction of former regime of Hosni Mubarak that was characterized by repression and police brutality.
The 59-year-old Field Marshal said in the speech that he will work hard to create "a healthy relation between security apparatuses and the people based on preserving dignity and respecting freedom." Yet he warned that "freedom without commitment leads to disorder."
About 1,200 attendees, including outgoing President Adly Mansour, cabinet members as well as local and foreign dignitaries, showed up at the palace ceremony.
On Sunday morning, Sisi was sworn in at the Supreme Constitutional Court in Cairo as Egypt's new president amid massive security presence. The military strongman comes to office nearly one year after the ouster of his predecessor.
Hours after taking the oath of office, Sisi headed to the northeast Ittihadiya presidential palace in Heliopolis, where he addressed a prior ceremony and then signed with Mansour a power transfer document, the first of its kind in the country's modern political history.
More than 50 delegations topped by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Saudi Crown Prince Salman Bin Abdelaziz, as well as the rulers of Kuwait and Bahrain and other Arab and foreign dignitaries, attended the ceremony.
"For the first time, Egypt is witnessing a democratic and peaceful power transfer from a president to another," Sisi said. " We will make up for what we have lost and we will establish a country with a better future," he added.
He also expressed thanks to all the guests and gave a special praise to Saudi Arabia, one of the most generous supporters to Egypt.
Most of the Gulf countries were throwing their weights behind Sisi after Morsi's ouster, pumping about 20 billion U.S. dollars in aid to Egypt.
King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia described Sisi's victory as " historical." He called for a donor conference to help Egypt revive its flagging economy.
Qatar, whose ruler and prime minister sent congratulatory messages to Sisi on Sunday, is the only Gulf nation that supports Morsi's Brotherhood group, the oldest and most influential Islamist movement in Egypt.
Bucking the trend, Western countries were represented by low- level officials or envoys.
Meanwhile, large numbers of Sisi's supporters surrounded the two presidential palaces, as well as several public squares nationwide, including the iconic Tahrir Square, to celebrate the new president's inauguration who defeated his only rival, leftist politician Hamdeen Sabahy, in the three-day election.
Source: Xinhua
