Prominent Egyptian activist freed after presidential pardon

CAIRO (AP) — Egyptian authorities have released a prominent political activist serving a four-year sentence on terror charges that rights advocate deem baseless. Thursday’s release of Hossam Monis comes on the heels of the freeing of several high-profile detainees, days before the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which is typically a time of amnesty. Monis was arrested in June 2019 along with seven other people, including Zyad el-Elaimy, a former lawmaker, and key secular activists in the country’s 2011 uprising. Their arrests came shortly after they had met with political parties and opposition lawmakers to try and hash out how to run in the 2020 parliamentary elections.