Egyptian authorities extended on Tuesday a nationwide state of emergency for three months for the sixth time since it was imposed in April last year. President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi issued a presidential decree to renew the state of emergency which was previously extended five times, first in July 2017, then in October, January, April and July. The new three-month state of emergency takes effect on 16 October 2018, according to the Official Gazette. The Egyptian armed forces and security forces are to take necessary measures to confront the dangers and funding of terrorism, maintain security across the country, and protect private and public installations, as well as citizens' lives, the Tuesday decree read. Al-Sisi firstly imposed a nationwide state of emergency in April 2017, following two Church bombings on Palm Sunday which resulted in the death of at least 45 people and over 100 injuries. The two bloody attacks, which the Islamic State group (IS) branch in North Sinai claimed responsibility for, are among dozens of terrorist assaults hitting the country in the past five years. The attacks targeted hundreds of security personnel, Christians and even Sufi Muslims, and were mostly carried out by the IS branch in Sinai. The military launched in February 2018 a comprehensive operation, dubbed ‘Sinai 2018', to confront militants in central and North Sinai, the Nile Delta region, and the Western Desert. The operation resulted in the death and arrest of dozens of militants, as well as thwarting planned attacks, according to military statements.
