Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi has extended a nationwide state of emergency for three months, effective from October 15, the official state gazette said on Monday.

The state of emergency was first imposed in April 2017 after two church bombings which killed 47 people. It has been continually extended since.

El-Sisi issued a decree on Monday ordering the new extension.

The latest extension allows security forces to “take necessary [measures] to confront the dangers and funding of terrorism and to safeguard security in all parts of the country,” read the decree, published in the official gazette.

Egypt launched a large-scale counter-terrorism campaign involving the police and the military in February to crush militants in the northern and central Sinai regions, parts of the Nile Delta and the country's Western Desert.

The military have killed more than 500 militants during the campaign, according to a tally based on military statements.