AlQa'dah 27, 1433, Oct 13, 2012, SPA -- Egypt's public prosecutor said on Saturday he will keep his job, in a blow to President Mohamed Mursi who just two days ago sought to replace the Hosni Mubarak-era official by appointing him as ambassador to the Vatican, according to Reuters. Mursi's effort to remove Abdel Maguid Mahmoud from his post was seen as a response to the acquittal of senior Mubarak-era officials who had been standing trial on charges of organising violence during the uprising against the deposed leader. But the move triggered an outcry from judges who said Mursi had exceeded his powers. Critics attacked the new president for a step they described as an attack on the independence of the judiciary. Since he came to office as Egypt's first freely elected president, Mursi has removed other Mubarak-era officials including Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, Mubarak's former defence minister, and other top generals. In an elaborate resolution of the crisis, the Supreme Judicial Council presented Mursi with a petition on Saturday demanding Mahmoud stay in his job. The presidency in turn said Mursi would halt moves to make him an ambassador. Al-Ahram, the state-run newspaper, declared it a "victory for the judiciary over the presidency". Vice President Mahmoud Mekky, who also serves as Mursi's justice minister, told journalists that Mursi had appointed Mahmoud as an ambassador with his consent, denying the president had ever sacked him. He said the move was legally sound. But perceptions that Mursi had tried to fire Mahmoud spread widely, prompting commentators to ask where Mursi gets his legal advise. -- SPA
