Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who took office on Monday, tasked prime minister Ibrahim Mahlab with forming a new government after the previous cabinet resigned, the presidency said.

Ex-army chief Sisi was sworn in on Sunday after winning a lopsided victory in a vote boycotted by the Muslim Brotherhood movement of Mohammed Morsi, the elected president he deposed last July.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi warned on Sunday, hours after being sworn in, that there will be "no leniency" for those who commit acts of violence.

In a televised address to the nation, Sisi promised to work toward "reconciliation" but not with those who have "shed blood."

Ex-army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who was sworn in Sunday as Egypt's president, may have donned civilian clothes but his crackdown on opponents has raised fears he could herald a return to autocracy.

Sisi was chosen as president in a May 26-28 election with 96.91 percent of the vote, nearly a year after toppling the country's first freely elected leader, Islamist Mohammed Morsi.

An Egyptian appeals court on Saturday overturned the conviction of a policeman who was sentenced to 10 years in jail for the deaths of 37 prisoners from tear gas.

It also overturned suspended one-year sentences handed to three other officers over the August deaths of the prisoners, who were alleged supporters of ousted Islamist president Mohamed Morsi.

Speaker Nabih Berri will lead a Lebanese delegation to participate in the inauguration of the new Egyptian president while Prime Minister Tammam Salam apologized for not being able to attend the swearing-in of president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Sunday.

Al-Liwaa newspaper reported on Saturday that Berri is expected to be accompanied by deputy PM Samir Moqbel.

As Egypt prepares to swear in its fourth leader since 2011, a huge slice of $1.5 billion in U.S. aid remains in deep-freeze amid fears the nation is sliding back into authoritarianism.

Former general Abdel Fattah al-Sisi will be crowned as the next president on Sunday after three years of political turmoil since the ousting of long-time iron-fisted leader Hosni Mubarak.

The diplomat ridding the world of Syria's chemical weapons is Sigrid Kaag, a statuesque and impeccably dressed mother of four who speaks six languages and is fearless in a war zone.

For nine months she has led the international mission to destroy Damascus's declared chemical agents, braving mortar fire, jetting between the Middle East, Europe and New York, and liaising with Moscow, Washington and maritime fleets.

Israel's premier and president congratulated Egyptian president-elect Abdel Fattah al-Sisi Friday, stressing their commitment to the peace accord between the neighboring states.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke with Sisi and "congratulated him on his victory in the election," the premier's office said.

A senior State Department official will represent the United States at Sunday's inauguration of the new Egyptian president, but in a sign of U.S. unease, no cabinet-level ministers will attend.

The U.S. delegation to the swearing-in of president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi will be led by State Department counselor Thomas Shannon, a senior adviser to Secretary of State John Kerry, a U.S. official said Thursday.

Egypt approved new punishments Thursday for sexual harassment, amid rising pressure on authorities to fight the rampant phenomenon.

Until now, Egypt has not had a law defining sexual harassment, despite more than 99 percent of women being subjected to some form of abuse, a 2013 study by the United Nations said.