The Egyptian authorities released late on Tuesday 14 Palestinian prisoners detained during the rule of ousted President Hosni Mubarak, the Palestinian Al Quds radio station has reported.
The decision to free the detainees was made by the Egyptian Supreme Council of Armed Forces (SCAF), which took power in the country following Mubarak’s resignation in mid-February.
Notorious smuggler Muhammad Ash-Shaer, known in Gaza as the “King of tunnels,” and “Al-Far,” (the mouse), was among those freed, the radio station said. The released Palestinians have already arrived in Gaza, it said.
In early March, the Egyptian authorities released 12 Palestinian prisoners after they went on a hunger strike in protest against their “illegal” detention.
More than 30 detainees, including Ayman Nofal, a key member of the Hamas’ armed wing Qassam Brigades, escaped from Egyptian jails amid February’s unrest in the country that overthrew Mubarak’s regime.
According to Palestinian human rights activists, a total of 19 Palestinians remain in Egyptian prisons.
GAZA, April 6 (RIA Novosti)