Kyrgyz ex-president released from prison for treatment

MOSCOW (AP) — The former president of Kyrgyzstan, Almazbek Atambayev, was released from prison on Tuesday in order to seek medical treatment.

Atambayev, who led the Central Asian former Soviet republic from 2011 to 2017, was convicted in 2020 of corruption and abuse of power and sentenced to 11 years in prison.

His supporters have repeatedly complained that he has not received adequate medical treatment in prison for conditions including heart trouble and gastritis.

After leaving the prison, Atambayev said he would soon travel to Spain for treatment and that he intended to return to Kyrgyzstan.