Egypt pardons 1,118 prisoners

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi yesterday signed a decree granting amnesty to 1,118 non- political prisoners on the anniversary of the liberation of Sinai, according to the country’s interior ministry.

In a statement published yesterday, the ministry confirmed the release of 1,051 inmates eligible for release under the amnesty, in addition to 67 inmates who were granted conditional releases. The amnesty did not include political prisoners.

Egypt celebrates Sinai Liberation Day on 25 April, the day when the last Israeli soldier withdrew from the area in 1982.

Last month, Al-Sisi issued an amnesty for 203 detainees imprisoned on criminal charges relating to public demonstrations. The amnesty is the third in five months and follows a pledge made by the president during a youth conference in 2015 that he would release batches of prisoners.