Egyptian President Pardons Prisoners Detained Over Protests

Protesters chant antigovernment slogans during a protest near the Interior Ministry in Cairo in February 2012 condemning the death of soccer fans at Port Said stadium.

President Muhammad Morsi has pardoned Egyptians who were detained or convicted in connection with the protests that toppled dictator Hosni Mubarak last year and demonstrations against the subsequent interim military government.

The decree, issued on October 8, pardons all people who were jailed for activities connected to the uprising against Mubarak and the military regime except those convicted of murder.

No number was given for how many prisoners were being pardoned.

The decree covers people arrested between late January 2011 and the end of June 2012, when Morsi took office as president.

Activists have said thousands of civilians were detained during and after Mubarak’s fall, and these detainees have been described as “political prisoners.”

Based on reporting by Reuters and AFP