RIYADH: Saudi Arabia has released an elderly Briton who served 14 months in prison for possession of alcohol, a banned substance in the Kingdom.

Karl Andree, 74, was sent back to the United Kingdom on Tuesday night. Andree, who has seven grandchildren, and had lived in the Kingdom for 25 years, was arrested in Jeddah on Aug. 25 last year after bottles of homemade wine were found in his car boot. He was sentenced to 12 months in jail and 350 lashes.

British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said in a statement on Wednesday: “I am grateful to the Saudi government for their efforts in ensuring this positive outcome, following our discussions during my visit last month.”

“It’s through the strength and breadth of the relationship between our nations that we have been able to overcome a difficult issue like this,” said Hammond, in reference to trade and political ties between the United Kingdom and Saudi Arabia.

British Ambassador Simon Collis and Nicola Woodget, spokeswoman of the United Kingdom’s embassy, could not be reached for comment late Wednesday.

Andree’s family had launched appeals to have him released from prison and spared the flogging on health grounds. They said that the lashes could kill him because he suffered from cancer and other illnesses.

Last month, British Prime Minister David Cameron made a personal appeal to Saudi Arabia amid growing fears of deteriorating relations between the two nations.

There were reports that the Saudi ambassador to London Mohammed bin Nawaf bin Abdulaziz was upset over the criticism of the Kingdom’s rights record and was set to leave Britain.

The Kingdom is home to over 30,000 British nationals currently. There are more than 200 joint ventures between British and Saudi companies, worth $17.5 billion. Saudi Arabia is the United Kingdom’s primary trading partner in the Middle East.