Iran's judicial authorities have pardoned 22,000 people who took part in anti-government protests. According to the Iranian official news agency IRNA, this was stated by the head of the judiciary, Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei.
In early February, Iranian authorities reported that Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei had pardoned "tens of thousands" of prisoners, including some of those arrested during the protests.
“So far, 82,000 people have been pardoned, including 22,000 people who participated in (these) protests,” Ejei said.
Iranist Maxim Alontsev explained to The Insider that amnesty on the occasion of the events of the religious calendar is a frequent occurrence in Iran, probably this year it was announced on the eve of the month of Ramadan:
“At the moment, the situation is escalating due to the most serious protests in the history of the Islamic Republic. This can be regarded as a desire to win over the "doubters" and marginalize the radicals – they say, we are ready to forgive even those who oppose us.
Prior to this, the authorities did not demonstrate a clear desire to meet the protesters. On the contrary, the law on the hijab, which became a catalyst for protests (Mahsa Amini was taken to the police station for non-compliance with this law), is planned to be tightened – violators will be identified with the help of cameras and their bank accounts will be blocked. Also, the death sentences against the protesters met with strong condemnation from the international community, which the current regime still has to reckon with, despite the anti-Western rhetoric.”
Massive protests in Iran began after the vice police arrested 22-year-old Mahsa Amini on September 13 in Tehran, allegedly for violating the country's strict hijab law. The family was told that she would be released from the police station after a "re-education session". Later, doctors diagnosed Amini with a stroke and a heart attack, her kidneys failed, and the girl fell into a coma – on September 16, she died in an Iranian hospital. Witnesses reported that Amini was beaten in the detention van, but this was denied by the police. Officials also deny all allegations and say that the deceased simply started having heart problems. Amid protests, the German Foreign Ministry called on its citizens to leave Iran due to the threat of arbitrary arrest and jail time.
In October, Iranians protested after Asra Panahi, a 16-year-old Iranian woman beaten by security forces , died . She was beaten for refusing to sing a song praising the country's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The spontaneity of the protests, the lack of a well-coordinated leadership and clearly defined tasks do not yet allow us to talk about the beginning of a revolution, noted orientalist Nikolai Kozhanov. According to him, even if the Iranian authorities manage to survive the current crisis, it will be difficult for them to regain the confidence of the population, and large-scale reforms in the country are already inevitable.
