Egypt swears in a new Cabinet as mounting economic challenges fuel public discontent

CAIRO (AP) — Egypt’s new Cabinet was sworn in Wednesday with major changes in the defense, foreign ministry and economy portfolios as the country faces mounting public discontent and conflicts in neighboring nations.

Years of economic mismanagement, the coronavirus pandemic and the fallout of wars in Europe and the Middle East have all caused economic pain including ballooning inflation. In addition, a Western-backed reform program — adopted in 2016 and backed by President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi — has led to austerity measures. Nearly 30% of Egyptians live in poverty, according to official figures.

As el-Sissi chaired the first meeting of his government, the president affirmed the importance of completing the economic reform program and urged the government to work on “attracting and encouraging domestic and foreign investments,” according to his office.

Mohamed Maait, Egypt's finance minister since 2018, was replaced by his deputy Ahmed Kouchouk, a former World Bank economist who played a major role in implementing a reform program with the International Monetary Fund.

Earlier this year, the government floated the pound and sharply increased the main interest rate. Commercial banks are now trading the U.S. dollar at more than 47 pounds, up from about 31.

Meanwhile, Egypt's revenues from the Suez Canal have dropped as Yemen’s Houthi rebels attack shipping routes on the Red Sea.

Egypt also has been struggling to revive the lucrative tourism sector. In the new Cabinet, Sherif Fathy, a former civil aviation minister, replaced Ahmed Issa as tourism and antiquities minister.

Another source of discontent is recurring power cuts during summer's soaring heat in the country of over 106 million people. Mahmoud Esmat was named to oversee the electricity ministry.

As conflicts rage in Gaza, Libya and Sudan, Badr Abdelatty, who has been Egypt’s envoy to European countries including Germany and Belgium, was named foreign and migration minister. The 58-year-old diplomat replaced Sameh Shoukry, who led Egypt's diplomacy for the past decade.

Gen. Abdel-Majeed Sakr replaced Gen. Mohamed Zaki, who had led the defense portfolio since 2018. El-Sissi also appointed Lt. Gen. Ahmed Fathy Khalifa as the military's chief of staff.

El-Sissi, elected in December for a third six-year term, tapped Prime Minister Mustafa Madbouly, in office since 2018, to form the new government last month.

The new Cabinet includes four women and several technocrats. Some ministers, including those in charge of police, health and transportation, remain in place.

El-Sissi, a former defense minister, was first elected president in mid-2014 and reelected in 2018. A year later, constitutional amendments passed in a general referendum added two years to el-Sissi’s second term and allowed him to run for a third.

In this photo provided by Egypt's presidency media office, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, center, pose with Egypt's new cabinet, led by Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly, fourth left, at Al-Ittihadiya Palace in Cairo, Egypt, Wednesday, July 3, 2024. (Egyptian Presidency Media Office via AP)

HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. (AP) — Two people were killed and three others injured in an attack during a neighborhood Fourth of July gathering in a Southern California beach city, police said Friday.

The county coroner removed two bodies Friday morning from the crime scene, which encompassed a grassy median in a residential neighborhood lined with palm trees. The violence was just a few blocks from the beach in a community known as “Surf City USA."

A 26-year-old Huntington Beach resident was arrested on suspicion of murder and attempted murder, said city spokeswoman Jennifer Carey. Officials released no further details on the attack Thursday night other than to say it was an “assault with a deadly weapon." It began less than two hours after the city's fireworks display ended roughly a mile (1.6 kilometers) away.

Violence was reported across the country on Thursday. The Fourth of July historically is one of the nation’s deadliest days of the year.

In the Huntington Beach neighborhood, people on bicycles rode up to crime scene tape blocking off the street Friday morning to ask police and bystanders what happened. Evidence of a gathering remained, including chairs, a cooler and drink cans on a grassy median near the homes. Remnants of fireworks also littered the street.

Resident Al Pacella said he knows one of the victims of the attack, which began during a casual neighborhood gathering for the holiday.

“Just a get-together with the neighbors and some local friends,” Pacella said. “Everybody there is really nice and easygoing, they’re all neighborly and help each other out.”

Pacella was walking back from a bar and stopped by the party for a few minutes before he headed home. Less than an hour later, he saw police lights outside his window.

“It’s heartbreaking," he said. “It’s just tragic.”

The district attorney’s office said they had not yet received the case from police by Friday morning but charges could be filed as early as Monday. A spokesperson for the Orange County coroner did not have details about the victims’ fatal wounds. And the mayor did not respond to a request for comment.

Shootings and other violence during the extended Fourth of July weekend have left at least 18 other people dead, including 11 in Chicago, and injured dozens more nationwide.

Dazio and Ding reported from Los Angeles.

Police officers stand guard at the crime scene where police say two people were killed and three others injured in Huntington Beach, Calif., Friday, July 5, 2024. Two people were killed and three others injured in Independence Day violence in the beach city, police said Friday. (AP Photo/Eugene Garcia)