<p class="hyphenate ">The justice ministry said the 5,654 detainees that would be freed were selected based in their age, health, good conduct and length of detention.</p>
<p class="hyphenate ">They would be released in stages due to "exceptional circumstances linked to the emergency health situation and necessary precautions" against the virus, it said in a statement.</p>
<p class="hyphenate ">The decision came as the COVID-19 illness has officially killed 66 people and infected 960 in the North African country.</p>
<p class="hyphenate ">The king also ordered authorities to take "all the necessary measures to reinforce the protection of detainees in prisons" which are widely known to be overcrowded.</p>
<p class="hyphenate ">Morocco, home to 35 million people, has an estimated 232 detainees per 100,000 inhabitants.</p>
<p class="hyphenate ">With the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, rights groups have urged authorities to release all political prisoners, including those held in preventive detention or nearing the end of the terms.</p>
<p class="hyphenate ">But it was not immediately clear if detainees linked to the "Hirak" protest movement that rocked northern Morocco in 2016 and 2017 would be among those pardoned by the king.</p>
<p class="hyphenate ">Morocco's prison authorities have meanwhile taken measures to protect staff and reduced visits.</p>
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<p class="hyphenate ">The UN rights chief Michelle Bachelet last month said countries should consider releasing older detainees and low-risk offenders.</p>
<p class="hyphenate ">Several other countries, including Iran, Afghanistan and Indonesia, have moved to release thousands of prisoners to lower the risk of a major outbreak of the virus in prisons.</p>