New group of prisoners to be released on occasion of 6th of October War anniversary

CAIRO – 28 September 2023:  A new batch of inmates were released as per a presidential decree, on the occasion of the celebration of Armed Forces Day.

The Official Gazette (Al-Waqa'i' al-Misriyya) published President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi’s Decision No. 417 of 2023 regarding pardoning a new group of some convicts.

On August 9, 2023, President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi issued decree Saturday pardoning some of received final prison sentences, including Activist Ahmed Douma.

Representative Tariq Al-Khouli, a member of the Egyptian Presidential Pardon Committee, announced that President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi used his constitutional powers and issued Decree 348 of 2023 pardoning some of those sentenced to final rulings, including Ahmed Saad Douma.

In July 2022, member of Presidential Pardon Committee, Tareq El Awady announced that Egyptian imprisoned activists Alaa Abdel-Fattah, Khaled Lutfi, Ahmed Douma, Ziad Al-Alimi, some broadcasters on the Qatari-owned Al-Jazeera network, youth from the April 6 Movement and the accused in the Hope Cell are on the list of presidentially pardoned inmates.

In October 2016, President Sisi announced the forming of a presidential pardon committee, headed by political thinker Osama al-Ghazaly Harb, for pardoning detainees with charges pending further investigation.

In November 2016, Sisi declared the first presidential pardon list, pardoning 82 detainees including TV presenter and religious thinker Islam al-Behery, who was on a charge of “contempt of Islam.”