Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi has named a senior judge known for his deep hostility toward the now-outlawed Muslim Brotherhood as Justice Minister, the Associated Press reports.

Ahmed el-Zind, chairman of the Judges Club, a powerful association of members of the judiciary, was sworn in on Wednesday, May 20, before el-Sissi. El-Zind was an outspoken supporter of the July 2013 military takeover that ousted the Islamist Mohammed Morsi, Egypt's first freely elected president who hails from the Brotherhood.

El-Sissi, the military chief at the time, led Morsi's ouster and was last year elected president.

As justice minister, el-Zind replaces Mahfouz Saber who quit last week in the face of an uproar over comments he made in a television interview that children of sanitary workers should not be allowed to be judges, who must have an "appropriate" background.