Egypt on Tuesday passed amendments to its constitution which would lengthen president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi to remain in power until 2030 by extending the current term to six years and allow him to stand for one more.
Mr Sisi is due to stand down in 2022 when his second four-year term ends. The vote must be put to a referendum within 30 days.
This has been seen by critics as another step back to authoritarianism, eight years after a pro-democracy uprising ended Hosni Mubarak’s three-decade rule.
The amendment would also give Mr. Sisi more power over the judiciary and further enshrine the military’s role in politics.
In 2013, Mr. Sisi led the military’s overthrow of Egypt’s first democratically elected president, Mohammed Morsi, following protests against his rule.
Since then, he has overseen what human rights groups say is an unprecedented crackdown on dissent that has led to the detention of tens of thousands of people.
Mr. Sisi was first elected president in 2014 and was re-elected last year after winning 97% of the vote. He faced no serious competition because several potential rivals dropped out or were arrested.
Parliament is also dominated by supporters of Mr Sisi and it has been criticised by the opposition as being a rubber stamp for the president.