BEIJING (AP) — Noted Tibetan political prisoner Jigme Gyatso has been released after 17 years in a Chinese prison and is reported to be in poor health as a result of his treatment, an overseas Tibetan spokesman and U.S.-backed broadcaster said Tuesday.

The 52-year-old former monk has returned to his hometown in an ethnic Tibetan area in the northwest province of Gansu, according to Tashi Phuntsok, spokesman for the self-declared Tibetan government-in-exile in India. He said Jigme Gyatso had been released about one year early, likely because of poor health due to harsh treatment in prison.

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