Iran issues conditional amnesty, reduction in sentences for thousands of convicts

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Sunday approved pardoning and commuting the sentences of “tens of thousands” of prisoners, with the country’s judiciary saying the amnesty will only be extended to detained protesters who have signed a written pledge of remorse. 

Iran often issues pardons to prisoners around the time of national and religious holidays, in accordance with Article 110 of Iran’s constitution. The recent decision comes in celebration of the 44th anniversary of the Islamic revolution in Iran.

The exact number of those included in the amnesty has not been announced, with an official statement saying it applies to “tens of thousands.” The amnesty will not include those accused of or charged with committing “espionage” for foreign powers or having direct contact with foreign intelligence services, intentional murder or injury, and destruction and arson of government facilities.

In addition, protesters detained during the latest protests are not included given that according to Khamenei, they have no shown remorse for their actions. 

It is unclear how many of those arrested in the recent protests will be included in the pardoning, but Sadegh Rahimi, judicial deputy of the Iranian judiciary, said that only the protesters who are “disgusted with their past actions and pledge not to repeat them” will benefit from the amnesty.

Khamenei approved of a pardon or reduction in sentence for 2,272 prisoners in July in celebration of Eid al-Ghadir.

Iran has been subjected to heavy criticism from the international community and rights groups for human rights violations and abuses in prisons, raising concerns about poor conditions, abuse of prisoners, and use of torture in the country’s penal system.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and its paramilitary, Basij, led a violent crackdown on nationwide protests sparked by the death of young Kurdish woman Zhina (Mahsa) Amini while in the custody of the morality police last September. 

At least 527 protesters, including 71 children, have been killed and over 19,500 have been arrested since the protests began, according to the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) on Sunday.