Curfew hours reduced in Arish

Egypt’s Cabinet has reduced curfew hours in the North Sinai city of Arish, as well as the Arish-Rafah International Road, to four hours a day, from 1 am to 5 am.

The rest of the governorate will remain under curfew from 7 pm until 6 am until further notice, according to a Cabinet statement released Wednesday.

North Sinai Governorate remains a hot-spot for violence and clashes between militants and security forces.

Two policemen and a civilian were killed in a roadside bomb in Arish on Sunday, while Province of Sinai, a Sinai-based militant group which pledged allegiance to the Islamic State, also announced Wednesday that it killed a Croatian hostage after he was abducted from the outskirts of Cairo recently.

A three-month state of emergency was put in place in North Sinai following October 2014 attacks on military checkpoints that killed more than 30 security personnel. Originally set to expire on January 25, it has been extended each time it approaches the expiry, although hours have been reduced several times.

The curfew puts any citizen seen in public after the designated time in danger of being shot by security forces, while the state of emergency grants security forces exceptional powers and leaves citizens vulnerable to arbitrary arrests and detention without trial.

Citizens also complain that the restrictions have curtailed economic activity in the area, and made it difficult for citizens to access medical care or other emergency assistance during curfew hours.