Cairo: Egyptian President Abdul Fattah Al Sissi on Friday pardoned 502 prisoners ahead of Eid Al Fitr.
The pardoned inmates were convicted in cases related to violating a contested law that bans street protests without prior police approval, Egypt’s state-run Middle East News Agency reported.
They include 175 men, 25 women, eight university professors, five engineers and three lawyers, the agency said without providing details of their jail terms.
The list also includes prisoners released for health reasons.
Al Sissi instructed Interior Minister Majdi Abdul Ghafar to release the 502 inmates before the Eid holiday that is expected to start on Sunday, the presidential office said.
In recent months, dozens of prisoners, mainly young people jailed for participating in illegal protests, have walked free in Egypt under a presidential pardon.
In October last year, Al Sissi ordered the formation of a non-governmental committee to look into cases of detainees who would qualify for presidential clemency.
Members and followers of the now-outlawed Muslim Brotherhood are excluded from the pardon.
In late 2013, Egypt started enforcing the anti-protest law amid an outcry from the opposition and rights groups.
The government said the law was necessary to end violent protests staged by Brotherhood followers after the army, led at the time by Al Sissi, deposed in mid-2013 president Mohammad Mursi, who hails from the Islamist group. Rights advocates said the law was aimed at muzzling dissent.
