Releases may be linked to Khin Nyunt's fall from power
Burma has released from jail several senior members of the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD).
Those freed include Kyaw San, Toe Bo, Ohn Maung and Aung Zin, the NLD said.
There have been unconfirmed reports that Win Tin, one of the NLD's founders who has been imprisoned since 1989, has also been released.
The surprise move appears to be related to the purging last month of former prime minister Khin Nyunt, who headed the National Intelligence Bureau.
Burma's state media said earlier that 4,000 prisoners would be released because their detentions, by the NIB, were "improper".
The BBC's South East Asia correspondent, Kylie Morris, says that according to sources, 600 prisoners have been released so far, and 30 of those were political prisoners.
But she adds that observers are sceptical that political prisoners will make up a big proportion of the overall total.
"It was a pleasant surprise for all of us," said 77-year-old Ohn Maung, an official in the NLD, whose leader Aung San Suu Kyi remains under house arrest.
"I did not have to sign any undertaking and I expect most of the NLD members will also be released like me," he said.
He had been incarcerated for more than six years.
State media said on Thursday the Burmese military junta "had detected improper deeds among the acts carried out by the National Intelligence Bureau" (NIB), and would begin releasing the prisoners immediately.
Since Khin Nyunt was sacked last month, the NIB has been disbanded and dozens of army intelligence officers are thought to have been imprisoned.
Internal tensions
Analysts believe the recent releases point to internal tensions within the Burmese administration, and signal the junta's attempts to distance itself from the past actions of the NIB.
The move also comes ahead of a regional Asean summit in Laos, where Burma will be under pressure from the international community to produce evidence that it is improving human rights inside the country.
Khin Nyunt, who is under house arrest, was ousted on 19 October by Than Shwe, head of the junta, in what was seen as a consolidation of his power.
Within days, the intelligence bureau, which gave officers loyal to Khin Nyunt widespread powers and benefits, was abolished.
Amnesty International estimates that there were 1,350 political detainees in 2004, many associated with Aung Sang Suu Kyi's NLD.
The junta has never admitted to holding political prisoners.
However, under pressure from the international community, it freed some detainees in small groups in 2002 and 2003, citing "humanitarian" reasons.
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