Egypt's New Parliament Speaker: Too Old Guard?

 Egypt's newly elected Parliament met for the first time over the weekend, with major tasks ahead, including approving several years of Presidential decrees in the absence of Parliament. There were controversies even over the Parliamentary oath, but the selection of law professor ‘Ali ‘Abdel-‘Al as Speaker has also drawn criticism.

‘Abdel-‘Alis a veteran lawyer and Parliamentarian, but many see him as a figure of the Old Guard, of the Mubarak and SCAF years. The Old Guard is well represented in the new Parliament, and is much weaker constitutionally than the Parliament elected in 2011.