Joe Biden has signed a pardon for his son - Hunter Biden - due to be sentenced this month on gun crime and tax convictions.

The US President previously said he wouldn't pardon him, but now says his son was selectively and unfairly prosecuted.

US correspondent Logan Church says this news comes as a shock to everyone - given how Biden was originally opposed to the pardon. 

"For all of Joe Biden's re-election campaign - and after he stepped aside in support of Kamala Harris - he vowed that he would not pardon his son at all. It appeared like a political strategy more than anything else."

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