The Egyptian military on Saturday vowed to oversee a peaceful transition towards a democratically elected, civilian-led government, as life began to return to normal following 18 days of nationwide protests, dpa reported.
"There will be a peaceful transition of power to the government when the environment allows for a freely elected government that governs the land by democracy," a military spokesman said.
The Higher Council of the Armed Forces, to whom president Hosny Mubarak ceded power when he resigned on Friday, also said that his cabinet would remain in place until a new government was formed and that Egypt would respect past international agreements.
It additionally called on state security officials to respect their oath - "The police, serving the people" - after deadly clashes during the protests added to already widespread mistrust of the police.
Meanwhile, thousands of people again gathered on Saturday in Cairo's Tahrir Square, with many helping tidy up the area after the all-night celebrations that followed Mubarak's departure.
Civilians and soldiers removed road blocks in and around the square, the focal point of the demonstrations of the last few weeks.
People also cleaned the streets and garden areas around the square, surrounded by graffiti reading "Egypt is free."
"This is just a start, said Mariam, a medical student, as she helped her friends in the clean-up work. "Now, it's our chance to have a real role in re-building our country."
A group of young activists, who formed a coalition to speak on behalf of the January 25 demonstrators, announced that they would leave the square and allow the army to oversee a peaceful transition of power as has been promised.
The army's first decision on Saturday was to curtail the curfew imposed in Cairo, Alexandria and Suez to last from midnight to 6 am (2200 to 0400 GMT), as businesses and banks were expected to open for normal hours on Sunday, the first day of the working week in Egypt.
Cairo stock exchange officials said their bourse would reopen on Wednesday, after being closed for nearly three weeks.
Also on Saturday, senior government officials were banned from travelling outside Egypt without permission in a bid to stop them from escaping possible corruption charges, airport officials said.
Former prime minister Ahmed Nazif and the much-despised former interior minister Habib al-Adly were among a group of around 40 who have been banned from travelling and have had their assets frozen.
Egyptian Information Minister Anas al-Fiqi has also been placed under house arrest, broadcaster al-Arabiya reported, quoting army sources.
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