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Egypt's ruling military council has pledged to hand over power to an elected president by the end of June. The military council's promise comes as votes were being counted after Sunday's presidential run-off election, The BBC reports. During a news conference, Lt. Muhammad al-Assar of the Supreme Council of Armed Forces (SCAF) said that a ceremony would be held in late June to hand over power to the new president. The constitutional declaration issued by the SCAF effectively gives it legislative powers, control over the budget and over who will write the permanent constitution following mass protests that had toppled Mubarak in February 2011. The army's declaration has been widely condemned in opposition, with prominent political figure Mohamed ElBaradei describing the declaration as a 'grave setback for democracy and revolution'. Former presidential candidate Hamdeen Sabahi, who came third in the first round of voting and was the favoured candidate of many in the protest movement, said the declaration was a 'seizure of the future of Egypt'. Parliament Speaker Saad al-Katatni, of the Muslim Brotherhood, said the declaration was 'null and void'. The Brotherhood had earlier urged Egyptians to 'protect their revolution' after the SCAF dissolved parliament.

Egyptian army vows to hand power to elected president by month end