Sheikh Khalifa pardons 391 prisoners

Released prisoners will also have their debts paid off and be allowed to return to their families.

A total of 391 prisoners are to be released after they were pardoned by Sheikh Khalifa, President of the UAE, according to the state news agency WAM.

The move, announced yesterday, is meant to give the offenders a second chance, and reunite them with their families.

Sheikh Khalifa will also pay off the debts of the released prisoners, who have all been convicted of financial crimes in Abu Dhabi.

The prisoners, a combination of Emiratis and expatriates, will now have their cases processed by the Public Prosecution Department and Abu Dhabi Police.

The move is one of many such humanitarian gestures from the President and rulers around the country.

In August, Sheikh Khalifa ordered the release of 724 prisoners ahead of Ramadan, and settled their debts.

In that instance, clemency was granted to 426 inmates in Abu Dhabi, and 298 in other prisons across the country, WAM reported.

Those inmates - also Emiratis and expatriates - had been serving jail terms for various crimes.

Pardons are granted for humanitarian reasons, but other factors are also taken into consideration, including the nature of the crime, the length of the sentence, the length of the jail term served, and the behaviour of the prisoner while in jail.