New batch of prisoners released by presidential pardon in Egypt

CAIRO - 1 January 2023: Member of the House of Representatives Tarek al-Khouly, who is also member of the presidential pardon committee, announced Sunday the release of a new batch of prisoners who either were sentenced or being prosecuted in trials pertaining to freedom of expression.

In statements made in December, Khouly noted that 30 prisoners would be freed soon, pointing out that the number of individuals pardoned since April amounts to over 1,000.

Egyptian authorities released in November a new group of 30 pretrial detainees as per a decision by the Public Prosecution.

The Presidential Pardon Committee, formed in 2016 and reactivated by Sisi in April, aims to release young prisoners of conscience and reintegrate them into society.

Khouly previously explained to Egypt Today the criteria that the recently revived committee’s work is based on to prepare pardon lists.

“Our work while preparing the pardon lists and choosing names conform to two criteria; first, they must not be part of a terrorist group and second, they must not have engaged in violence and bloodshed crimes,” Khouly said.

He added that all those who do meet these criteria have the chance of being included in the pardon lists.

Khouly affirmed that the committee receives pardon requests via many avenues, including through the National Council for Human Rights (NCHR) and the human rights committees of the House of Representatives and Senate.

In addition, the committee receives pardon requests through the National Youth Conference website, Khouly added.