CAIRO, Sept 17 (Aswat Masriya) - Egypt's Prosecutor-General ordered on Wednesday the release of 116 students who have been held in preventive detention on charges of illegal assembly, as the new academic year begins.

"This decision came to preserve their future in education," said a statement by Hisham Barakat, the prosecutor-general. 

The academic year will begin on September 21 in schools and on October 11 in universities. 

The 2013-2014 academic year in Egypt witness unprecedented violence as students supporting ousted Islamist president Mohamed Mursi holding near-daily protests to demand his reinstatement and denounce the detention of their colleagues.

The demonstrations often descended into clashes with security forces or opposing students. The campuses and dormitories of Al-Azhar University in different Egyptian cities saw some of the worst violence, with several students killed. University buildings were also destroyed or set on fire during the clashes.