Moroccan King Pardons 958 Prisoners


Moroccan King Mohammed VI performed the Eid prayer on Monday. (MAP)
Moroccan King Mohammed VI performed the Eid prayer on Monday. (MAP)
TT

Moroccan King Pardons 958 Prisoners


Moroccan King Mohammed VI performed the Eid prayer on Monday. (MAP)
Moroccan King Mohammed VI performed the Eid prayer on Monday. (MAP)

Moroccan King Mohammed VI granted pardon to 958 prisoners on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr, the kingdom's Justice Ministry said in a statement on Sunday.

The statement said that 29 prisoners convicted of extremism and terrorism are among the pardoned people, noting they have participated in an initiative launched by the Moroccan government to rehabilitate terrorists.

Of these prisoners, 23 were released, while six got reductions in their sentences.

Called "Moussalaha," meaning "reconciliation" in Arabic, the program is offered to prisoners who have demonstrated willingness to disavow extremism.

Since 2002, Morocco has dismantled more than 2,000 militant cells and arrested more than 3,500 people accused of links to radical groups.



US Ambassador to Lebanon 'Very Happy' over Aoun's Election as President

People carry national flags as they hold a moment of silence marking the one-year anniversary of Beirut's port blast, near the site of the explosion in Beirut, Lebanon August 4, 2021. REUTERS/Emilie Madi Purchase Licensing Rights
People carry national flags as they hold a moment of silence marking the one-year anniversary of Beirut's port blast, near the site of the explosion in Beirut, Lebanon August 4, 2021. REUTERS/Emilie Madi Purchase Licensing Rights
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US Ambassador to Lebanon 'Very Happy' over Aoun's Election as President

People carry national flags as they hold a moment of silence marking the one-year anniversary of Beirut's port blast, near the site of the explosion in Beirut, Lebanon August 4, 2021. REUTERS/Emilie Madi Purchase Licensing Rights
People carry national flags as they hold a moment of silence marking the one-year anniversary of Beirut's port blast, near the site of the explosion in Beirut, Lebanon August 4, 2021. REUTERS/Emilie Madi Purchase Licensing Rights

US ambassador to Lebanon Lisa Johnson said she was "very happy" over Lebanese army commander Joseph Aoun's election as president on Thursday, ending a more than two-year vacuum in the post.

Johnson and other foreign envoys had attended Thursday's session at the Lebanese parliament in which Aoun was elected.

For its part, France's Foreign Ministry said on Thursday said the election of a new Lebanese president turns a new page for the country and must now be followed by the appointment of a new government capable of carrying out reforms.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Christophe Lemoine said that a new government will have carry out reforms necessary for Lebanon's economic recovery, stability, security and sovereignty, and added that France calls on all Lebanese political leaders and authorities to work towards those goals.