Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi has announced an extension of three months for emergency situation in the country.

The announcement was made in a decree on Saturday.

Cairo says the measure is meant to allow security forces to take necessary steps to confront the dangers and funding of terrorism, and safeguard the security in all parts of the country.

Egypt first imposed the current state of emergency last April following two deadly church bombings in Tanta and Alexandria. It had been extended three times.

Under Egypt’s law, a state of emergency can only be extended once, but the country’s president has the power to reinstate it if deemed necessary.

The emergency law will allow the police to make arrests and conduct surveillance and seizures more easily. The latest extension has raised fears among some Egyptians and human rights activists, who view the measure as a formal return to the pre-2011 police state under the rule of former dictator Hosni Mubarak.

Egypt has been facing violence due to terrorist attacks across the country in the past few years, with Takfiri terrorists taking advantage of chaos, which reigned soon after the first democratically-elected president, Mohamed Morsi, was ousted by the military in July 2013.

The Daesh-affiliated Velayat Sinai group has claimed most of the assaults. The Takfiri terrorist group has expanded its attacks to target members of Egypt’s Coptic Christian community as well as foreigners visiting the country, prompting Cairo to toughen up a controversial crackdown, which critics say has mostly targeted dissidents.

KD