Egypt extends emergency in North Sinai by 3 months

Egypt today extended by three months the state of emergency in some parts of the restive North Sinai governorate, which was imposed after an attack in the region that killed over 30 soldiers last year.
The government decided to extend the emergency by three months, including a night-time curfew between 7 PM to 7 AM local time, media reports said today.
The state of emergency for three months was first imposed in October last year following two separate deadly attacks that had claimed the lives of more than 31 soldiers.
In January, the government had extended the three-months state of emergency for the first time in the area.

Egypt's Sinai has witnessed many violent attacks by militants since the January 2011 revolution that toppled ex- president Hosni Mubarak.
The attacks targeting police and military increased after the ouster of Islamist ex-president Mohamed Morsi in 2013.
Last year, Egypt declared a three-month state of emergency and a curfew in different parts of Sinai following a terror attack that left at least 31 soldiers dead in October.
The military has launched security campaigns in the area, arrested suspects and demolished houses that belong to terrorists, including those facilitating tunnels leading to the Gaza Strip.