King Mohammed VI has pardoned 653 convicts on the occasion of the Revolution of the King and the People celebrated by Morocco on August 20.

The Ministry of Justice unveiled the list of the beneficiaries of the royal pardon, who are either detained or serving a suspended sentence. The list includes 16 individuals who had been convicted in cases of extremism and terrorism.

King Mohammed VI has granted pardon “to prisoners convicted in cases of extremism and terrorism, who have obtained the royal approval after they officially expressed their attachment to the unwavering and sacred constants of the Nation and national institutions, revised their ideological orientations and rejected extremism and terrorism,” the Ministry of Justice said.

The pardoned individuals include inmates who were granted pardon over their remaining jail terms, convicts who had their prison terms reduced, and prisoners who saw their sentences commuted from life imprisonment to fixed jail terms.

Some convicts benefited from pardon over their imprisonment terms but their fines were maintained. Other convicts saw their fines canceled, while others benefited from both a pardon over their prison terms and fines.

The King usually grants free pardon to inmates and convicts on religious and national holidays.