Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra is set to be released from a Bangkok prison next month. The decision follows a Justice Ministry panel's move to grant him parole after serving eight months of a one-year prison term for corruption, which began in September.
Thailand's corrections department stated that the early release was justified by Shinawatra's age and the fact that he had less than a year left to serve. He is expected to be released in May.
The release paves the way for his possible return to politics as his family's party takes a lesser role in a new conservative-led government.