Indonesia frees Christian politician jailed for blasphemy

A policeman stands as he guards in front of Mobile Police Brigade (Brimob) headquarters in Depok, south of Jakarta, Indonesia, January 24, 2019. REUTERS/Willy Kurniawan

DEPOK, Indonesia (Reuters) - Indonesia on Thursday released the popular former governor of Jakarta from jail, after serving a reduced two-year sentence for blasphemy against Islam, a case that exposed deep religious divides in the world's largest Muslim-majority country.

An ethnic Chinese Christian, Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, 52, lost a 2017 bid to be re-elected governor over charges of insulting the Koran that brought hundreds of thousands of Muslim protesters to the streets, led by hardline Islamist groups.