Hassan Rouhani inaugurated as Iran president

Iran's new president Hassan Rouhani will be publicly inaugurated on Sunday when he takes the oath of office in parliament, which according to local media reports will be attended by 10 presidents and other senior foreign officials.

Rouhani was formally endorsed by Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khameini, in a ceremony that was attended by top Iranian figures including outgoing president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, and foreign dignitaries.

Saturday's ceremony came a day after Rouhani expressed solidarity for the Palestinian people in a speech marking Quds day, an annual event in Iran held in support of the Palestinian people and opposing Israel's control of Jerusalem.

Al-Quds is the Arabic name for Jerusalem.

Rouhani, a relatively moderate cleric who won the June 14 presidential election, will take the oath of office on Sunday in Iran's parliament.

He won the election by a significant margin and ran on a platform that included a promise to follow a "path of moderation" in international affairs and to ease restrictions on Iranian civil liberties.

The 64-year-old is a former nuclear negotiator for Iran and was an Islamic activist before the 1979 Revolution.

Speaking at the ceremony, Rouhani said: ''I have assumed this responsibility with the support of those people who want change, who want a better life, away from corruption, poverty and discrimination, people who want more respect and dignity, and hope in a secure future."

He has the support of Iran's reform movement, which wants the new president to release political prisoners and have international sanctions lifted.