President Abdel Fattaha al-Sisi is expected to issue a presidential pardon to 200 political prisoners within the next few days. Among those expected to be pardoned are a number of university students, sources in the Interior Ministry said on Tuesday, on condition of anonymity. The presidential pardon will be executed on the occasion of Eid Al-Adha according to a list of names prepared by divisions within the Interior Ministry, which includes the Prisons Authority and human rights sector. Like previous pardons issued by al-Sisi, this pardon will include prisoners who are not jailed over charges related to drug dealing, homicide, or any crime that represents a threat to Egypt's national security. The list of pardoned prisoners reported includes well-known political prisoners, according to local media reports. In July, the state-affiliated National Council for Human Rights (NCHR) prepared a list of young political detainees with the hope that they may be granted a pardon. According to the council, there have been ongoing demands for the release of a number of political detainees, and NCHR has compiled a list of detainees who they claim did not engage in violence and request to be released.
