DHAKA: Egypt’s new prime minister said Sunday that security was his cabinet’s top priority, as security forces have faced near daily attacks since the July ouster of Islamist president Mohamed Mursi.

In his first address to the nation, Ibrahim Mahlab, a former member of the party of toppled autocrat Hosni Mubarak, said Egypt was faced ‘with challenges that are like mountains’, but vowed to confront them with transparency and firmness.

‘The first priority is to impose security, counter terrorism firmly and legally, and restore stability by preserving human rights and democracy,’ Mahlab said in a televised speech, reports TDS.

‘I know that the responsibility is big, that the challenges are bigger. But together, we will face all crises and steer the nation’s ship to the shore of security.’

On Saturday, Mahlab unveiled a new 31-member cabinet that retained Field Marshal Abdel Fattah al-Sisi as defence minister, after the previous government made a surprise exit amid mounting criticism over the battered economy.

Since Mursi’s overthrow, Islamist militants have carried out scores of deadly assaults on security forces and bombed a tour bus in what was seen as an attack on one of the country’s top revenue generators.

BDST: 1913 HRS, MAR 02, 2014