- NEW: President says he wants military to focus on protecting the homeland
- Tantawi's 'expertise will be of higher value' as a presidential adviser, PM says
- Morsy has replaced the defense minister who took over for Mubarak, his spokesman says
- He also reversed a military decree claiming legislative power for the generals
Cairo (CNN) -- Egyptian President Mohamed Morsy shook up the country's powerful military leadership Sunday, replacing top generals and reasserting power the military claimed for itself before he took office.
Field Marshal Mohammed Hussein Tantawi, the defense minister who took power after the 2011 ouster of longtime strongman Hosni Mubarak, was given a top medal and "sent to retirement," Morsy spokesman Yasser Ali announced Sunday evening on state-run Nile Television. So was Lt. Gen. Sami Anan, the chief of staff of the armed forces.
Both men were named as advisers to Morsy, the country's first freely elected president, but no details of the new posts were announced. The commanders of Egypt's navy, air force and air defense force were sent into retirement as well, Ali said.
Speaking Sunday night at Al-Azhar University in Cairo, Morsy addressed the shakeup, saying it was meant to move the nation forward.
"The decisions that were made today were not directed at certain people, and I didn't mean to embarrass institutions. My goal is not to narrow down the freedom of those who were created free by God," the president said.
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