Iran pardons over 20,000 people arrested during countrywide protests

As many as 22,000 of the people who were arrested during the protests in Iran started as of September 16, 2022, have been pardoned, Chief of Judicial System of Islamic Republic of Iran, Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje'i said, News.az reports citing IRNA.

Mohseni-Eje’I said that a group of those detained during the protests were pardoned before the arrest decision was made and another group was pardoned after they were sentenced to prison time.

“In addition to those detained during the protests, 59,000 people were included in the amnesty act, 25,000 of them have been released, and 34,000 will be released,” the chief added.

According to him, the amnesty act did not apply to those arrested in connection with serious crimes and theft cases.

The protests in Iranian cities were prompted by death of a 22-year old Iranian woman Mahsa Amini, allegedly after being beaten by Iran's morality police while in custody for violating the strict hijab-wearing rules. Amini's death on September 16 triggered mass protests in Iran several days later.

Hijab was made mandatory for women in Iran shortly after the country’s 1979 revolution. Women who break the strict dress code risk being arrested by Iran’s morality police. Based on the dress code, women are required to fully cover their hair in public and wear long, loose-fitting clothes.

After the mentioned incident, a wave of protests has taken place in Iran, and the protests now cover various fields, including economy, social inequality, ethnic inequality, etc.

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