50,000 prisoners to be released in Iraq next year
The Iraqi government and the multi-national forces are to release a total of 50,000 Iraqi prisoners in stages next year, a top official said Sunday.
'The number of inmates in Iraqi government-run prisons is 24,000... in the prisons of defence, interior and justice ministries,' said Muwafaq al-Rubaei, Iraq's national security advisor.
'The government intends to give them a pardon according to a plan that has to be approved by parliament and a cabinet decree,' he added.
The statement came at a handover ceremony at Basra's airport, where a memorandum of understanding was signed and control was formally transferred to the Iraqis.
Al-Rubaei said that another plan, coordinated with the multi-national forces, would see the release of 26,000 prisoners from detention facilities run by coalition forces.
The decisions come as part of the 'ongoing reconciliation process' currently in motion in Iraq, according to the top security advisor.
'We believe that, regardless of political turbulence, this will generally enhance the security status in Iraq,' he added.
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