Egypt's army says it will hand over power

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Egypt's ruling military council said on Monday that the army will hold a ceremony to hand over power to the country's newly elected president at the end of June, the state news agency MENA reported.

Muslim Brotherhood candidate Mohammed Morsi claimed victory on Monday in Egypt's first free presidential election, as the military handed itself sweeping powers in a move denounced by activists as a "coup".

The Islamists' rival Ahmed Shafiq, a former air force chief and ex-prime minister to ousted president Hosni Mubarak, disputed the Brotherhood's victory announcement, labeling it "bizarre behavior".

"We reject it completely," Shafiq campaign official Mahmud Barakeh said to reporters about the Brotherhood's proclaimed victory.

A confirmed win by Morsi would mark the first time Islamists are elected to the presidency in the Arab world's most populous nation, but the military rulers' moves to consolidate power ahead of the final results have rendered any future president toothless.

State television has reported that initial counts showed Morsi in the lead.

There were scenes of jubilation at Morsi's headquarters, where the candidate himself thanked Egyptians for their votes in brief remarks after the Brotherhood said he had won 52 percent of the vote.

Morsi pledged to work "hand-in-hand with all Egyptians for a better future, freedom, democracy, development and peace".

"We are not seeking vengeance or to settle accounts," he said, adding that he would build a "modern, democratic state" for all Egyptian citizens, Muslims and Christians.

But Mahmud Barakeh, the Shafiq campaign official, said their figures showed that their candidate was leading in the count.

"We are astonished by this bizarre behavior, which amounts to a hijacking of the election results," Barakeh said.

Morsi's supporters screamed with excitement, some wiping tears from their eyes. Several hundred held a victory rally in Cairo's iconic Tahrir Square, the hub of protests in February 2011.

The jubilation was overshadowed, however, by a looming showdown between the Brotherhood and the ruling military, which issued a new constitutional document shortly after the polls closed on Sunday granting it sweeping powers.

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Lee Hannon is Chief Editor at China Daily with 15-years experience in print and broadcast journalism. Born in England, Lee has traveled extensively around the world as a journalist including four years as a senior editor in Los Angeles. He now lives in Beijing and is happy to move to China and join the China Daily team.