Egypt's agriculture minister was arrested in Cairo on Monday after being told to resign in connection with an investigation into corruption at his ministry, judicial and media sources said.

Salah Halal "resigned on the orders of the president," a statement from the prime minister's office said.

He was detained on leaving the premier's office, a judicial source told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity.

"He was arrested as part of an investigation into a major case of corruption in his ministry," the official MENA news agency reported.