Originally posted by Wikinews. Wikinews content appears under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.5 license except where specified. As these articles are static snapshots of news items that may be later updated, they may not represent the latest or final revision of that article, and posted information may be only preliminary. Egyptian prime minister steps down; armed forces appoint former transport minister to position ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- March 4, 2011 Original URL: http://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Egyptian_prime_minister_steps_down;_armed_forces_appoint_former_transport_minister_to_position has made the decision to resign from his position as of Egypt. , which currently controls the country, made the announcement in a statement released on Thursday. Shafik was appointed to his position by Hosni Mubarak during the 2011 Egypt anti-government protests, not long before Mubarak made the decision to resign as Egyptian president on February 11, 2011. Meanwhile, a number of his cabinet ministers retained their positions. Shafik had received criticism for his negative attitude towards protesters of low ages and his insufficient aims, according to the . In response to the announcement of Shafik's resignation, , a executive accredited for organizing the first demonstration and former political prisoner, wrote on Twitter, a micro-blogging website, "Power to the people!" During the Egyptian protests, one of the key demands of the protesters was for Shafik to step down from as acting minister status. , another pro-democracy activist, tweeted on Twitter that Egypt is "on the right track." The statement released from the Council also announced the new prime minister will be . "The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces decided to accept the resignation of Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq and appointed Essam Sharaf to form the new government," the armed forces have said on social networking website Facebook. Sharaf formerly held a position as the . The Los Angeles Times reports that he departed from that position five years ago, during the aftermath of numerous train collisions, in which the Egyptian government was accused of carelessness. Former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak was given a by Egypt on Monday; his family were also given them. According to , Mubarak is not in the good health and has yet to have been sighted or heard from in public since his resignation. Despite one of their aims being achieved, protesters intend to continue demonstrating with mass rallies on Friday because all their demands have yet to be met. The removal of a current emergency law is amongst those demands. The law allows the Egyptian government to place people under arrest with no charges brought against them. In a statement, the January 25 Youth Coalition said that they "still demand a specific time frame to achieve the rest of the revolution's basic demands." The protesters also continue to request the removal of ministers with ties to the old regime. Former Egyptian prime minister Ahmed Shafik in 2011. |Newly appointed Egyptian prime minister Essam Sharaf in 2011. |Activist Wael Ghonim in 2011. |Pro-democracy activist Mohamed El Baradei in 2005. |Former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak on October 17, 2009. |The 2011 Egyptian protests taking place in Alexandria. |Egyptian protesters demonstrating in Tahrir Square, Cairo on February 8, 2011. |2011 Egyptian Revolution poster. |Flag of Egypt. |Coat of arms of Egypt. }} == Related news == * Hosni Mubarak steps down as president of Egypt == Sources == * http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-12634117 * http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/middleeast/la-fg-egypt-resign-20110304,0,2355852.story * http://www.voanews.com/english/news/africa/north/Egyptian-Military-Appoints-New-PM-117320308.html * http://twitter.com/#!/ElBaradei/status/43298162156380160 * http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/egypt/8317055/Egypt-crisis-the-young-revolutionaries-who-sparked-the-protests.html * http://www.huffingtonpost.com/t/confirmation-rt-fustat-mo_33997531130101761.html .