Beirut - (AFP) - Egypt has released two senior businessmen after nearly two years of pre-trial detention on terrorism charges, their families said Saturday.

Maryam, the daughter of businessman Safwan Thabet , wrote on social media, "My father, Safwan Thabet, and my brother Saif al-Din Thabet are with us," without specifying when they were released.

Safwan Thabet, in his late 70s, is the founder and former CEO of the Juhayna dairy group.

He had been arrested in December 2020 and charged with joining and financing the Muslim Brotherhood. The group has been banned and classified as "terrorist" in Egypt since 2013.

As for his son, Saif Al-Arbaeen, he was arrested in February 2021.

Philip Luther of Amnesty International said the two men "were punished simply for daring to defy demands by Egyptian security officials to hand over their family's assets in Juhayna".

"They showed rare courage in resisting officials' attempt to blackmail them," Luther added in a statement issued in September 2021.

The prolonged pre-trial detention of Safwan Thabet and his son in solitary confinement, a measure Amnesty International said amounted to "torture", sparked international calls for their release.

When Egypt secured a $3 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund in October last year, the Washington-based advocacy group Freedom Initiative drew attention to their situation.

"Egypt's political economy remains largely controlled by a few state actors willing to detain, intimidate, and harass even beloved business figures," Alison McManus of the organization said in a statement, referring to Safwan Thabet and his son.

Among the terms of the loans, Cairo pledged to privatize key public assets and increase transparency in government business dealings.

The authorities also released hundreds of political prisoners last year, although human rights organizations estimate that some 60,000 people remain in detention, many of whom face harsh conditions in overcrowded cells.