According to the draft, Egyptian prisoners in Saudi prisons would also be allowed to complete their terms in Egypt.

The council voted in favor of the agreement, made up of three chapters containing about 20 articles, after listening to a report on the issue presented by its security committee. The council also approved another draft agreement to exchange reports on and chemical tests of drugs, and other relevant data on the smuggling of drugs.

Sources said the draft agreements were considered following high-profile Egyptian media coverage of two Egyptian doctors who were imprisoned and handed lashes for illegally bringing intoxicating medicines into the Kingdom.

Following the report, Aisha Abdul Hadi, the Egyptian minister of manpower and immigration, threatened not to grant Egyptian doctors licenses to work in the Kingdom. She, however, retracted her statement a few days later.

Saudi and Egyptian legal experts said the prisoner exchange would end hostile media campaigns and cement brotherly relations between the two countries.