Egypt has extended its nationwide state of emergency for a further three months, starting 13 January, based on a decree issued by Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi on January 2nd. The decree was approved by parliament in a plenary session on Tuesday, with a two-thirds majority in favour. The decree authorizes the army and police to take the necessary steps to combat terrorism in order to preserve the safety of citizens and public property across the nation. The state of emergency was first imposed in April 2017 after two church bombings killed 47 people. It was then extended in July for another three months. In October, another decree was issued, declaring a fresh state of emergency for a new period of three months, with Tuesday's vote marking the first extension of that decree. According the Egyptian Constitution, a state of emergency cannot exceed six months from its date of declaration, while decrees imposing or extending it should be approved by the parliament within seven days.