Thailand's former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra is set to be released on February 18, Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin said on Saturday.

According to the Justice Ministry, the 74-year-old former prime minister is among the 930 inmates approved for parole this month. He is eligible for parole as he is over 70 years old and suffers from a serious illness.

Thaksin ended his exile of over 15 years and returned to Thailand in August 2023, and was soon detained and sentenced to an eight-year prison sentence on several charges.

However, he was quickly transferred from a Bangkok prison to a hospital due to health concerns and has remained in hospital since.

Last September, Thai King Maha Vajiralongkorn reduced Thaksin's prison term to one year following his request for a royal pardon.

Thaksin served as the Southeast Asian country's prime minister from 2001 to 2006 and had been in self-exile abroad since 2008. 

(Cover: Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra greets his supporters as he returns from self-exile at Don Mueang airport in Bangkok, Thailand, August 22, 2023. /CFP)