Tuesday’s statement from the Presidency says Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi changed articles stipulating that a permit for weapons’ imports has to be granted by the Interior Ministry, which is in charge of the Police.
El-Sissi’s amendments state that the Defense Ministry must give its approval first.
The motive for the amendments was not immediately clear but they give the military more power to control the country’s weapons market.
Egypt has been awash with weapons since 2011, the year Hosni Mubarak was ousted as president and when the police force collapsed for a period of time. That same year, neighboring Libya became the main source of illegal arms, following the fall of dictator Moammar Gadhafi.
Meanwhile, Al-Sissi warned university students on Sunday not to “engage in any hostile activities or follow any rebellious ideas”.
The warning came in a speech during a ceremony honoring the highest-ranking students in Cairo University, and which was broadcast on state television.
In his speech, Al-Sissi called on “students to pay attention to the importance of learning at the beginning of the new academic year,” which starts on October 11, and “not to engage in any hostile activities or follow any rebellious ideas aimed at undermining the homeland's capabilities”.
Al-Sisis accused unnamed “anti-national groups” of “exploiting students to achieve their goals and objectives”.
He called for “the need for a concerted effort from all institutions in the rehabilitation and training of young people, and this responsibility should not fall upon the universities only.”
Source: AP; Agencies
