<p class="title">The Maldives' government says it will not enforce a Supreme Court order to release and retry political prisoners, including a former president.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Legal Affairs Minister Azima Shakoor said on Monday that "the government does not believe that the Supreme Court ruling to release the political prisoners can be enforced."</p>.<p class="bodytext">The government response came after last week's court order that said the dissident political leaders' guilty verdicts had been politically influenced.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The ruling has led to protests by opposition supporters urging the government to obey the order. Clashes erupted between police and the political opponents on Thursday and Friday.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The United Nations and several foreign governments, including the United States, have urged the Maldives to respect the court order.</p>
<p class="title">The Maldives' government says it will not enforce a Supreme Court order to release and retry political prisoners, including a former president.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Legal Affairs Minister Azima Shakoor said on Monday that "the government does not believe that the Supreme Court ruling to release the political prisoners can be enforced."</p>.<p class="bodytext">The government response came after last week's court order that said the dissident political leaders' guilty verdicts had been politically influenced.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The ruling has led to protests by opposition supporters urging the government to obey the order. Clashes erupted between police and the political opponents on Thursday and Friday.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The United Nations and several foreign governments, including the United States, have urged the Maldives to respect the court order.</p>