Authorities have transferred to house arrest former Supreme Court chief justice Abdulla Saeed, former justice Ali Hameed, former chief judge of Maamigili magistrate court Ahmed Nihan, and former prosecutor general Muhuthaz Muhsin.

They were taken to Male’ on Sunday evening.

A key pledge of President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih is to allow political prisoners to be with their families while serving their sentences and to release those who were jailed unlawfully.

Former justices Saeed and Hameed are serving three-year prison sentences over two counts. Former judge Nihan and former PG Muhsin are serving 17-year prison sentences after being found guilty of forging documents to arrest President Abdulla Yameen.

It is likely that jailed former Vice President Ahmed Adeeb will also be transferred to house arrest, after he is released from hospital.

Other political prisoners have had their sentences suspended and released after the Supreme Court began reviewing their cases. They are former president Mohamed Nasheed, Adhaalath Party leader Imran Abdulla, former defence minister Mohamed Nazim, and former deputy speaker Ahmed Nazim.