The Supreme Council of Universities on Tuesday set 23 January as the beginning of the midterm holiday until 22 February instead of 8 February as had been previously planned.
The holiday was allegedly extended due to the protests organized by Muslim Brotherhood students on campuses.
The council also decided that the Easter holiday would begin 19 April until 24 April and that the academic year would end 29 May. It also set 31 May as the beginning of the four week exam period.
Cairo University President Gaber Nassar said the full-month holiday gives universities an opportunity to re-examine their security systems in order to bring an end to the violence on their campuses.
Since the beginning of the new school year, sympathizers of ousted President Mohamed Morsy have staged protests on campuses across Egypt, causing clashes with security forces, which has led to many student deaths and arrests.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
