Israel's cabinet on Sunday approved the appointment of Major General Benny Gantz as next chief of staff of the armed forces, ending months of infighting for the post among top generals.

A cabinet statement said Gantz had been unanimously approved for the position, which falls vacant on Monday when the term of incumbent military chief Lieutenant General Gabi Ashkenazi ends.

Traffic again flowed through much of Cairo's emblematic Tahrir Square on Sunday as most protesters headed home following the nationwide revolt that brought down President Hosni Mubarak.

Military police directed cars through what had been the epicenter of the uprising, past tanks that were pulled to the side of most roads and giant pictures of "martyrs" killed during clashes with pro-Mubarak thugs.

Egypt's new military leadership vowed Saturday to pave the way for democracy and abide by its peace treaty with Israel, as Egyptians basked in their victory a day after Hosni Mubarak's overthrow.

The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces said the current government would remain in place for a peaceful transition to "an elected civil authority to build a free democratic state," although it set no timetable.

A suicide bomber blew himself up inside a bus filled with Shiite pilgrims returning from mourning rituals in the Iraqi city of Samarra on Saturday, killing at least 30 people, hospital sources said.

"The suicide bomber quickly ran into the bus when it stopped at a checkpoint several kilometers (miles) outside Samarra, and detonated his vest inside the vehicle," a police official said.

A top aide to President Mahmoud Abbas said the Palestinian Authority will hold presidential and legislative elections by September.

The move appeared to be a response to the popular protests that drove Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak to step down late Friday.

Several thousand young Yemenis gathered in central Sanaa on Saturday, calling for President Ali Abdallah Saleh to step down and follow the example of Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak.

"After Mubarak, it's Ali's turn," chanted some of the estimated 4,000 protesters, mostly young students.

Egypt's military relaxed a nighttime curfew Saturday and banned current and ex-government officials from traveling abroad without permission in its first moves since taking power after President Hosni Mubarak's ouster.

The moves came as Egyptian protesters were jubilant over their success in ousting the longtime authoritarian leader, but many vowed to stay camped in Cairo's central Tahrir, or Liberation, square until they hear "clear assurances" that the military will meet their demands for democracy.

President Barack Obama on Friday welcomed the peaceful transition of power in Egypt with the resignation of longtime President Hosni Mubarak. "The people of Egypt have spoken. Their voices have been heard. And Egypt will never be the same," he declared.

In brief remarks at the White House, the president noted that it was "not the end of Egypt's transition, it's a beginning." He said that many important questions remain to be resolved and difficult times lie ahead.

Cairo's streets exploded in joy on Friday when President Hosni Mubarak stepped down after three-decades of autocratic rule and handed power to a junta of senior military commanders.

A grim-faced and ashen Vice President Omar Suleiman announced the handover on state television after an extraordinary national outpouring of rage brought more than a million furious demonstrators onto the streets.

President Hosni Mubarak flew out of Cairo to his Red Sea retreat on Friday as more than a million furious Egyptians marched in cities around the country to demand he step down.

Egypt's army threw the 82-year-old strongman a lifeline, endorsing his plan to stay in office until September even as determined protesters marched on state television headquarters and the presidential palace.