CAIRO
The government has decided to shorten a five-week-old nighttime curfew by two hours, starting Saturday.
In a Thursday statement, the government said the curfew would last from 12am to 5am as of Saturday, which marks the beginning of the new academic year.
Friday remains an exception, however, when the curfew will continue to come into force at 7pm.
Egyptian authorities imposed a state of emergency and nighttime curfew after the August 14 dispersal of two protest camps set up by supporters of ousted president Mohamed Morsi.
The government had said at the time that the measures would remain in place for one month in hopes of curbing mass protests sparked by the violent sit-in dispersals, which left hundreds dead and thousands injured.
Since then, the government has eased the evening curfew twice, except on Fridays, which usually see stepped-up protest activity.
Earlier this month, Egyptian authorities extended the state of emergency by another two months.
The strictly-enforced curfew has limited movement on the streets and disrupted a number of local businesses, many of which make most of their profits at night, especially during the summer.
The state of emergency allows security forces to arrest citizens and carry out searches of homes and vehicles without judicial permission.
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