Egypt extends state of emergency for fifth time

Egypt’s parliament has approved a decree issued by President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi to renew the state of emergency across the country for another three months starting 14 July, the Anadolu Agency reported.

House of Representatives’ Speaker Ali Abdel Aal told journalists that the reasons the state of emergency was first put in place still apply and so it is necessary for it to be extended.

First imposed in April 2017, the state of emergency came in to force for three months following attacks on two churches in the capital Cairo and the city of Alexandria.

The state of emergency allows the authorities to adopt broader powers, including the referral of terrorism suspects to state security courts, the imposition of curfews and restrictions on the media.

When a state of emergency is in place, the Egyptian president may also issue verbal or written instructions to spy on citizens’ communication, censor media outlets and close their printing presses.

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