Hollande seeks to prolong state of emergency by 3 months: Elysee

French President Francois Hollande was seeking the parliament's approval to prolong by another three months the state of emergency declared in the wake of the deadly Nov. 13 Paris attacks, his office the Elysee said on Friday.

"The French President has announced that, given the terrorist threat, the government would present during a cabinet meeting on Feb. 3 a bill extending the state of emergency for a period of three months," said a statement issued by the Elysee.

Hollande declared a state of emergency on Nov. 14, a day after the Paris attacks, with the aim to empower police to conduct house searches without judicial warrants and arrest suspects.

Five days later, lawmakers approved the government's proposal to extend the state of emergency to three months, a term expected to expire on Feb. 26.

In an interview with the BBC, Prime Minister Manuel Valls said the state of emergency should be maintained "the time necessary... until we can get rid of Daesh (Islamic State)."

"We cannot always live all the time in a state of emergency. But, as long as the threat is there, we must use all available means," he said. Endit