President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi issued a declaration on Wednesday to extend the state of emergency in North Sinai for an additional three months, according to the state’s official Gazette.
North Sinai has been under a state of emergency since the term of interim President Adly Mansour, who came into office following the ouster of former president Mohamed Morsi. The state of emergency was last extended in January 2016.
Since August 2013, clashes between the Armed Forces and Islamic State-affiliated militants in North Sinai have increased.
Meanwhile, a soldier was killed by an IED that targeted his armored vehicle that was accompanying water supplement convoy sent to security checkpoints in Sheikh Zuweid, according to several media reports.
The renewed state of emergency is connected to “dangerous security circumstances” facing North Sinai, and will be applied in areas starting from east of Rafah Hill until Al-Awga west of Al-Arish, including Al-Halal mountain and Rafah, according to presidency’s decision.
The decision will be implemented once it is approved by parliament.
The state of emergency will include a night-time curfew – from 7 pm to 6am – and the entrance to Al-Arish will see a 4-hour curfew starting from 1 am until 5 am.
“According to law 1958 , any citizen found in public during curfew hours will be imprisoned by the Armed Forces and police, due to necessary measures to fight the dangers of terrorism and maintain security in the area,” according to the decision.
Sinai has become the scene of frequent clashes between militants and state security forces.
As a result, an extensive counter-insurgency operation was launched to curb militancy. The Egyptian government has imposed a state of emergency in the peninsula’s northern regions.
