Khamenei announces amnesty for thousands of detainees in Iran protests

The supreme leader of Iran, Ali Khamenei, yesterday approved an amnesty for "tens of thousands" of prisoners, including "a significant number" of detainees in the wave of anti-government protests, according to the state news agency IRNA.

Thomas Osborne
Thomas Osborne
06 February 2023 Monday 01:26
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Khamenei announces amnesty for thousands of detainees in Iran protests

The supreme leader of Iran, Ali Khamenei, yesterday approved an amnesty for "tens of thousands" of prisoners, including "a significant number" of detainees in the wave of anti-government protests, according to the state news agency IRNA. The measure of grace, on the occasion of the 44th anniversary of the triumph of the Islamic revolution in 1979, comes after the mobilizations have subsided considerably in recent weeks as a result of the relentless repression against the demonstrators and especially the execution in the hanging of four detainees, one of them in public.

It is in any case a limited amnesty. According to information from the official media, it will not be applied to any citizen with dual nationality, nor to those accused of "corruption on earth", a charge punishable by death that has been presented against various protesters, including the four hanged. Also excluded from the pardon are those accused of "espionage for foreign agencies" or of being "affiliated with groups hostile to the Islamic Republic"; those accused of having killed or injured individuals or of having participated in the destruction of public or military property.

"Naturally, those who do not express regret for their activities and do not commit in writing not to repeat those activities will not be pardoned," said the number two in the judiciary, Sadeq Rahimi, state media reported.

Everything indicates that the measure is aimed at those detained by the protests, although the regime has not said so clearly. An early IRNA article, in Farsi, announced that Khamenei had "agreed to offer amnesty and reduced sentences to tens of thousands of those charged and convicted in the recent incidents." But a later IRNA article, this time published on its English-language channel, said the clemency and commutation of sentences were for "tens of thousands of inmates, including those detained in the recent unrest in Iran."

Pardoning prisoners is a common practice on the anniversary of the Islamic revolution, which is commemorated on February 11. Under Article 110 of the Iranian Constitution, the Supreme Leader has the authority to pardon on the recommendation of the judiciary.

The amnesty was preceded by a letter from the head of the judiciary, Golamhosein Mohseni Eyei, requesting a pardon from Ayatollah Khamenei on the grounds that many of the detainees are young people who had allowed themselves to be manipulated.

“During recent events, various people, especially young people, committed wrongdoing and crimes as a result of enemy indoctrination and propaganda,” Eyei wrote. “After the plans of foreign enemies and anti-revolutionary currents were thwarted, many of these young people now regret their actions,” she added.

The demonstrations broke out last September, after the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish girl who had been arrested for not wearing the hijab correctly. Since 1983, Iranian law requires all women to cover their hair and dress loosely in the name of Sharia, or Islamic law.

The wave of protests swept across the country, especially involving young people. The Islamic Republic has not wavered to stop what was surely the biggest social protest since 1979.

It is estimated that more than 500 people have died in the repression, including 70 minors. According to the anti-government organization Hrana, some 20,000 people have been arrested. Just yesterday a journalist was arrested, while another reporter was sentenced to one year in prison.