Egyptian President Sisi pardons 330 young prisoners

President Sisi similarly pardoned 82 prisoners, mostly university students, in November 2016, and 203 in March 2017. [Photo: Courtesy]

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi yesterday pardoned more than 330 young people at the start of the holy month of Ramadhan, some of whom local media said were detained while protesting.

"I ask the interior minister that these young people be present tonight with their families for the suhur (meal that precedes Ramadhan's daily fast," Sisi (right) said at a youth conference broadcast on state television.

Ramadhan, in which the faithful abstain from food and water from sunrise to sunset, begins today in Egypt.

Sisi had promised in 2016 to release youths imprisoned in protests that followed a crackdown of the supporters of former Islamist president Mohamed Morsi, who was ousted by the military in July 2013 following mass demonstrations against him.

Some '332 prisoner youth' have benefited from the presidential pardon, state-run Akhbar al-Youm newspaper reported yesterday.

The paper said those pardoned had been arrested during protests.

Sisi said he approved the pardons from a list proposed by the presidential committee to pardon young prisoners.