State of emergency and curfew end on Tuesday: Court

Aaron T. Rose
3 Min Read
Egyptian troops check IDs at a checkpoint during the curfew hours in Cairo late on August 19, 2013. (AFP File Photo)
Egyptian troops check IDs at a checkpoint during the curfew hours in Cairo late on August 19, 2013.  (AFP File Photo)
Egyptian troops check IDs at a checkpoint during the curfew hours in Cairo late on August 19, 2013.
(AFP File Photo)

The Administrative Court ruled on Tuesday that the Emergency State and the imposed Curfew must end by 4pm that same day.

Media Adviser to the Cabinet Sherif Shawky said in a statement on Tuesday that the cabinet is waiting to receive the verdict issued by Administrative Court ruling the end of state of emergency and the curfew to execute the decision.

Egypt’s major streets, squares and gathering points will continue to have a heightened security presence even after the curfew expires on Thursday, according to Minister of the Interior Mohamed Ibrahim.

In a statement issued on Monday, Ibrahim said that security forces will remain on the streets to “transmit a sense of confidence and security in the hearts of the citizens.”  A Ministry of Interior spokesman suggested that checkpoints may remain in place, but he was unable to confirm.

There will also be additional security on 19 November, which is both the second anniversary of the deadly clashes on Mohammed Mahmoud Street, and the date of the second leg of the World Cup qualifier between Ghana and Egypt, said Ibrahim.

Ibrahim warned that the “outlawed Muslim Brotherhood” would try and exploit the events of the day to hold large demonstrations.  He said extra security forces would be stationed outside police stations and other government buildings.

“We’ve installed surveillance cameras with the ability to portray the minute details of faces to identify anyone thinking of infringing on [municipal] installations and we will deal with them immediately,” said Ibrahim.  “In addition, we will deploy security forces to those facilities to pre-empt any attempt to attack or storm [the buildings].”

A curfew and a state of emergency have been in place in 14 governorates across Egypt since the 14 August dispersal of sit-ins supporting deposed President Mohamed Morsi.  The month-long curfew was extended for two consecutive months by interim President Adly Mansour on 12 September.  Extending the curfew further requires a public referendum.

 

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Aaron T. Rose is an American journalist in Cairo. Follow him on Twitter: @Aaron_T_Rose
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