TEHRAN – Leader of the
Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei has approved a proposal to pardon or commute the sentences of more than 3,450 Iranian convicts sentenced by various courts in the country.
The pardon was granted at the request of the country’s Judiciary Chief Gholam Hossein Mohseni Ejei on the occasion of the birth anniversaries of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and Imam Jafar Sadiq (AS), the sixth Imam of Shiite Muslims.
The top judge had proposed the amnesty for 3,458 prisoners.
The 17th day of the month of Rabi al-Awwal in the lunar Hijri calendar marks the birth anniversaries of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and Imam Jafar Sadiq (AS). This year it falls on Sunday, October 24.
Article 110 of the Constitution grants the Leader the right to pardon or reduce the sentences of convicts upon a recommendation from the head of the Judiciary.
The clemency, however, does not apply to certain types of convicts, including those who have been sentenced for their role in the armed struggle against the country, armed or organized drug trafficking, armed robbery, arms smuggling, abduction, bribery, and embezzlement.