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Oscar Pistorius released on parole

A friend of the former Paralympian says, “he will now look to go back into life, quietly initially, to try and rebuild”.

Ex-Paralympian Oscar Pistorius has been freed on parole from a South African jail, nearly 11 years after murdering his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.

He shot her multiple times through a bathroom door in 2013, later saying he had mistaken her for a burglar.

Mr Pistorius, now 37, was eventually convicted of murder in 2015 after an appeal court overturned an earlier verdict of culpable homicide.

He will live under strict conditions until his sentence expires in 2029.

Mark Williams-Thomas is an investigative journalist who has become a friend of Mr Pistorius since he was jailed. He told Newsday: “Those events that occurred on Valentine’s Day were incredibly serious, a life was lost but he fully accepts that. He fully accepts that what happened on that night he can’t change. These events are there in history and he has to live with that for the rest of his life…He accepts and regrets…he will now look to go back into life, quietly initially, to try and rebuild….he will never get to the position that was there before, but he will be able to have some kind of life.”

Reeva Steenkamp's mother, June Steenkamp, said in a statement: "We have always known that parole is part of the South African legal system, and we have always said that the law must take its course…The conditions imposed by the parole board, which includes anger management courses and programs on gender-based violence, send out a clear message that gender based violence is taken seriously."

"Has there been justice for Reeva?" she asked. "Has Oscar served enough time? There can never be justice if your loved one is never coming back, and no amount of time served will bring Reeva back. We, who remain behind, are the ones serving a life sentence."

(Picture: Shows Oscar Pistorius with Reeva Steenkamp on January 26, 2013. Credit: Waldo Swiegers / AFP via Getty Images.)

Release date:

Duration:

3 minutes