Egypt’s leader could rule until 2034

The Egyptian Parliament CAIRO — approved sweeping measures Thursday that would allow President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi to extend his leadership until 2034, further entrenching his authoritarian rule and enshrining in law the military’s dominance over the country.

The vote by Parliament, whose workings are quietly managed by el-Sissi’s intelligence agencies, sets in motion a fast-moving process of constitutional change that could culminate in a referendum within three months. The referendum’s approval is seen as a foregone conclusion.

The changes formally confirm what has become evident to many Egyptians for years: that the sweeping euphoria of 2011, when protests led to the ouster of President Hosni Mubarak, has given way to an even harsher brand of strongman rule under a leader who also intends to rule for decades, and perhaps for life.

“Project to amend #Egypt constitution unfolding & in full throttle,” the exiled opposition politician Mohamed ElBaradei, who resigned as vice president after el-Sissi’s security forces massacred more than 800 protesters in 2013, wrote on Twitter. “Arab Spring in reverse!”

The proposed amendments would allow el-Sissi, who is scheduled to step down in 2022, to run for two more six-year terms and would demolish the constitutional safeguards el-Sissi himself introduced in 2014, a year after he came to power in a military takeover.