Thirteen individuals held for over 18 years without being formally charged in Eritrea have been released from a infamous military detention facility, according to relatives of the detainees.
Those released were a number of well-known individuals, including 69-year-old Olympian cyclist and entrepreneur Zeragaber Gebrehiwot.
They had been held at Mai Serwa prison, known for its severe environment and where many inmates are believed to be detained for political reasons.
An unnamed source who was previously held in Mai Serwa stated the prisoners were taken into custody in October 2007 following an assassination attempt on a high-ranking internal security officer in the government.
Around 30 people were originally arrested, per the source. A number have been released in the intervening period, but about 20 stayed imprisoned.
Zeragaber competed in the Moscow Games in 1980 when Eritrea was a region within Ethiopia.
The nation in the Horn of Africa, which achieved sovereignty from Ethiopia in 1993, has a strong tradition of cycling and its riders have increasingly earned global acclaim in recent years.
Those released with Zeragaber include prominent businessmen Tesfalem Mengsteab and Bekure Mebrahtu as well as the Habtemariam brothers - David, an engineer, and Matthews, a geometrist.
A half-dozen high-level police officials and an state security officer were also freed.
The Eritrean government has remained silent concerning the releases.
Many of them are in poor health and this could explain why they have been freed now.
Relatives were not allowed to visit the prisoners throughout their incarceration, the relatives said.
United Nations bodies and human rights groups have long accused the Eritrean government of gross human rights violations, including torture, enforced disappearances and the detention of tens of thousands of people in deplorable circumstances.
Mai Serwa facility, situated about 9km north-west of the capital city, Asmara, has expanded over the years to incorporate 20 metal shipping containers in which prisoners are held incommunicado, sources have indicated.
Over the last three decades, Eritrea has remained a single-party nation with no functioning constitution. It is among the world's most militarised societies, with compulsory national service of unlimited duration.
There has been no free press since the shutdown of independent newspapers and detention of most of their editors and journalists in 2001.
This was when the government detained 15 politicians known as the G-15, along with 16 journalists, after they called for that the president put into effect the draft constitution and hold open elections.
Per rights groups, the fate and whereabouts of 11 of the politicians, as well as the journalists accused of links to the G-15, are still unconfirmed.
Now 79 years old, the leader recently passed 32 years in power and has yet to participate in an electoral contest.
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