Moscow ? A gravely ill former executive of the dismantled oil giant Yukos will be transferred from jail to a civilian clinic for treatment for AIDS-related cancer and tuberculosis, Russian prison officials said Thursday.

The move reverses previous refusals to allow Vasily Aleksanian to be treated at a hospital.

A Moscow court had ruled Wednesday that Aleksanian, who is standing trial on embezzlement charges, should remain in custody. But on Thursday, the Federal Penitentiary Service announced that Aleksanian would be transferred to a Moscow clinic.

Aleksanian was a vice president at Yukos and served as a lawyer for ex-Yukos owner Mikhail Khodorkovsky, who is now serving an eight-year sentence for fraud and tax evasion. Khodorkovsky launched a hunger strike nine days ago to protest Aleksanian’s treatment.