CAIRO, Egypt (AP) — The spokesman of Egypt’s interim president says a prominent economist, Hazem el-Beblawi, has been named prime minister and pro-democracy leader Mohamed ElBaradei as a vice president.

Ahmed el-Musalamani made the announcements yesterday after days of political stalemate over the prime minister post. Last week, ElBaradei was on the verge of being named prime minister, but at the last minute an Islamist party involved in the discussions blocked ElBaradei’s appointment.El-Beblawi, who is in his 70s, served as finance minister in one of the first cabinets formed after the 2011 uprising forced Hosni Mubarak from power and the military stepped in to rule.He resigned in protest in October 2011 after 26 protesters, mostly Christians, were killed by troops and security forces in a crackdown on their march.A look at some of the top figures emerging in Egypt after the military removed President Mohammed Morsi:—Interim President Adly Mansour, 67, a judge:Mansour emerged from near-obscurity when he became head of the Supreme Constitutional Court, two days before Egypt’s military chief announced last Wednesday that Morsi had been deposed and was to be replaced by the chief justice.Mansour’s career in the judiciary took a prominent turn in 1984, when he became a judge on the state council and then its vice president. In 1992, he was appointed vice president to the Supreme Constitutional Court. He became chief justice following his predecessor’s retirement on June 30.He was sworn in as Egypt’s interim president on Thursday.—Army chief and Defense Minister General Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, 58:El-Sissi stepped onto the centre stage of Egyptian politics when the military on July 1 gave Morsi a 48-hour ultimatum to resolve his differences with the opposition after millions took to the streets on June 30 to demand the Islamist leader leave power. On Wednesday, el-Sissi announced Morsi’s removal.A graduate of the Egyptian military academy and the US Army War College, el-Sissi was appointed commander in chief of the Egyptian armed forces in August 2012, replacing Field Marshall Mohammed Hussein Tantawi, who was ordered into retirement by Morsi.—Interim Prime Minister Hazem el-Beblawi, 76, a prominent economist:Egypt’s military-backed interim president named el-Beblawi as prime minister yesterday. He previously served as finance minister and held the title of deputy prime minister in one of the first cabinets formed after the 2011 uprising forced Hosni Mubarak from power and the military stepped in to rule. He resigned in protest three months later after 26 demonstrators, mostly Christians, were killed by troops and security forces in a crackdown on their march.He is one of the founders of the Egyptian Social Democratic party, one of several secular parties in the liberal grouping National Salvation Front.–Interim Vice President Mohammed ElBaradei, 71, former director of the UN nuclear watchdog agency:Originally pegged to be interim prime minister, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate was opposed by religious conservatives. Mansour named ElBaradei as vice president yesterday.With a long career on the international scene, ElBaradei served as an Egyptian diplomat to the United Nations and later as an aide to Egypt’s foreign minister. He was the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency for nearly 12 years. He and the IAEA shared the Nobel Peace Prize in 2005.After popular protests toppled Mubarak in February 2011, ElBaradei emerged as a democracy advocate and later as an opposition leader in the National Salvation Front. After a series of widely criticised moves by Morsi, ElBaradei said members of the dominant Muslim Brotherhood lived “in a delusion” for thinking they could manage the country on their own.Supporters of ousted President Mohammed Morsi protest in Nasr City, Cairo yesterday. After days of deadlock, Egypt’s military-backed interim president nameda veteran economist as prime minister yesterday and appointed pro-democracy leader Mohamed ElBaradei as a vice-president, while the army showed its strong hand in shepherding the process, warning political factions against “manoeuvering” that impedes the transition. (PHOTO:AP

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