Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouli issued a decree imposing a curfew starting Tuesday in some areas of North Sinai for a period of three months, in accordance with Presidential Decree No. 17 of 2019 on extending the state of emergency.
According to the decree, published in the Official Gazette on Wednesday, it is prohibited to roam the area extending from east of the Tel Rafah passing by the international border line and Awja west of Arish to Mount Halal.
To the north, the curfew is imposed in the area extending west of Arish, passing by the Mediterranean coast, until the international border in Rafah.
In the south, it extends from south of Mount Halal to Awja on the international border.
The curfews in the areas indicated are from 7 pm to 6 am on the following day, except for the area on the international road from the checkpoint of al-Midan to the west entrance of the city of Arish, where the curfew is from 1 am to 5 am of the same day.
On Sunday, Egypt’s parliament approved extending the current state of emergency with a comfortable majority of votes (two thirds of the members) for an additional three months starting from Tuesday, January 15.
This is the eighth time the state of emergency was renewed since it was imposed for the first time on April 10, 2017 after the terrorist attacks on two churches in Tanta and Alexandria that left approximately 45 people dead.
Egypt’s government says it is committed to the use of exceptional measures only to the extent that it ensures a balance between the protection of public freedoms and the requirements of national security.
Under the state of emergency, the president has the right to restrict freedoms of assembly, movement, residency and the right to monitor messages of any kind (such as through newspapers, leaflets and other publications) as well as all means of advertising before their publication, confiscating them, closing places where they are printed, setting the dates for the opening and closing of public shops, and the evacuation or isolation of some areas.
According to the state of emergency, the armed forces and the police shall take the necessary measures to confront terrorism and its financing, maintain security throughout the country and protect public and private properties.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
