Egypt's Minister of Higher Education Hossam Eissa announced Saturday that the curfew will be lifted on 14 November, reported Al-Ahram's Arabic news website. Earlier in October, the interim government announced that the state of emergency would end on 14 November, with no plans to extend it. At the time, there was no decision announced on the fate of the curfew. The curfew currently lasts from 1pm to 5am, except for Fridays, the traditional day of protest, when it starts at 7pm. On 12 September, Egypt's interim President Adly Mansour decided to extend the state of emergency for a further two months after it had been originally implemented on 14 August for a month. According to the constitutional declaration issued by the interim president, the state of emergency cannot be extended for more than three months unless it is approved via a national referendum. Egypt has been witnessing escalating violence since the ouster of former president Mohamed Morsi on 3 July. Street fights are common during protests. Security forces and churches have been targets for militants. More than 100 policemen have been killed since the ouster of Morsi. At least 43 churches have been attacked and over 200 Coptic properties damaged.
