The head of the Iranian regime’s judiciary ordered that the names of individuals arrested in the recent protests be removed from the annual pardon list.
Each year, a number of prisoners in Iran are pardoned on the occasion of February 11, the anniversary of the 1979 revolution. Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, head of the Iranian regime’s judiciary, has ordered that the names of all individuals who are in any way linked to recent “security issues” be removed from the pardon list and that this annual measure, which is carried out by order of Ali Khamenei, the regime’s supreme leader, not include them.
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On Monday, February 9, referring to the submission of the list of eligible convicts for pardon to Khamenei as in previous years, he stressed: “Given the circumstances that have arisen and the recent violent sedition, I have ordered that the names of all convicts who are in any way connected to security issues be removed from the pardon lists. The defendants and convicts of the recent unrest will also not be included in pardons or leniency.”
Earlier, media outlets inside Iran had reported that during a trip to Markazi Province, the head of the judiciary had spoken of “submitting a proposal for the pardon of part of those detained in the recent events and the approval” of Khamenei, the leader of Iran’s regime.
Following the popular January protests, the head of the Iranian regime’s judiciary has repeatedly emphasized severe and immediate response to protesters whom he has labeled “rioters.”
Ejei issued the order to remove the names of “security detainees” from the pardon list while thousands of protesters were arrested by regime forces during the January protests. A number of them are individuals under eighteen years old and school students.
Human rights organizations and bodies have repeatedly warned and expressed concern about the situation of those detained in the recent protests.
