Egypt: Government to lift 25-year-old emergency laws

Egypt plans to lift 25-year-old emergency laws granting security forces sweeping powers of arrest and detention that critics have long claimed are used against opponents of the regime. Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif announced the move in a speech to parliament, saying the laws would be replaced by new anti-terror legislation in Egypt, which has witnessed a string of deadly attacks in recent years. Nazif said he had ordered the formation of a committee of experts to draft the new law, without saying when he expected it to come into force.