CAIRO: Prominent liberal Egyptian leader Mohamed ElBaradei was sworn in on Sunday as Egypt's interim vice president for foreign relations, the presidency said in a statement.

The appointment of ElBaradei, a former head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog and a Nobel peace laureate, follows the military overthrow of Islamist president Mohamed Mursi on July 3.

He was initially tipped to lead the cabinet, but his nomination was rejected by the ultra-conservative Salafist party Al-Nur.

ElBaradei was late last year named head of the National Salvation Front, a coalition of leftist and liberal groups, formed in the wake of a power grab by Mursi in November.