(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa in a statement on Monday ordered political prisoners freed and stopped trial proceedings against them.
The decision came in response to numerous calls for the release of political prisoners and is viewed as the Bahraini monarch's latest bid to ignite talks to end a standoff with the opposition.
This is while thousands of Bahraini pro-democracy protesters are preparing for a massive demonstration in the capital Manama on Tuesday, having camped out in the city's Pearl Square, the epicenter of the popular drive for change, the previous night.
Demonstrators maintain that they will hold their ground until their demands for freedom and a say in the government are met.
Meanwhile, a senior opposition figure, who has been sentenced in absentia, has announced his intention to return to Bahrain from London on Tuesday.
Hassan Mashaima, the exiled leader of the opposition Haq movement, announced his intention on Monday.
At least seven people have so far lost their lives and hundreds of others have sustained injuries in the days of violent government crackdown on Bahraini pro-democracy protesters.
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