Ayatollah Khamenei agreed on Tuesday to pardon or commute the sentences of eligible Iranian convicts upon a proposal from Judiciary Chief Hojatoleslam Seyed Ebrahim Raeisi, who had requested the Leader’s clemency for prisoners with specific conditions.

The amnesty proposed by Iran Leader was granted in honor of Eid al-Mab’ath – the anniversary of the day Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) was chosen as God’s messenger, the birthday of Imam Ali (AS) – the first Shiite Imam, and Nowruz, which marks the beginning of the new Iranian year.

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.

In his request, the top judge had asked Ayatollah Khamenei to approve of the clemency considering the need to reduce the population of prisons, help the inmates to reintegrate into the society, and minimize the negative impacts of imprisonment on the families of the inmates.

The status of conviction of the eligible prisoners to whom the Leader’s clemency applies must be finalized until March 18, 2020.

The new clemency would apply to a large number of inmates, including those who have been sentenced to more than 10 years in prison and have remained behind bars for at least half the sentence period.

Men above the age of 70 and women above the age of 60 will also be released from prison, provided that they have served at least one-fifth of their sentences.

The clemency, however, does not apply to certain types of convicts, including those who have been sentenced for their role in the armed smuggling of narcotics, arms trafficking, kidnapping, acid attacks, rape, armed robbery, bribery, embezzlement, counterfeit money forgery, money laundering, disruption of the economy, and smuggling of alcoholic drinks.

The post Amnesty Granted to Many Iranian Inmates; Leader Promises appeared first on Iran News Daily.

The London-based rights organization examined court documents and spoke to activists and lawyers for its 53-page report, which sheds light on the secretive proceedings of the Specialized Criminal Court.

The report found that trials before the court were “a mockery of justice” and its judges “willing accomplices” in suppressing those who dare speak up, AP reported.

Amnesty said some of the common charges in proceedings included “disobeying the ruler” of Saudi Arabia, “questioning the integrity” of officials, “seeking to disrupt security and inciting disorder by calling for demonstrations” and “disseminating false information to foreign groups” — crimes that can hinge on speaking to human rights groups or the use of social media.

“Our research gives lie to the shiny new reformist image Saudi Arabia is trying to cultivate,” said Heba Morayef, Amnesty’s Mideast and North Africa regional director. She said the government has used the special court “to create a false aura of legality around its abuse of the counter-terror law to silence its critics.”

Amnesty also said that the government’s rhetoric about reforms under the crown prince stands in stark contrast to reality in the kingdom where women’s rights activists and dozens of perceived critics of the young prince remain imprisoned or face trial on vague charges related to national security. Some, like reformist cleric Salman al-Awda, face the death penalty in trials before the court.

Prince Mohammed faced intense international scrutiny after the killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul in 2018. A Saudi criminal court sentenced five to death for the killing but did not hold any high-ranking officials responsible.

Amnesty documented the cases of 95 people tried before the special court between 2011 and 2019. Of those, 68 are Shiites who were mostly prosecuted for their participation in anti-government protests, while 27 people were prosecuted for their political activism or expression.

“In all cases … the trials were grossly unfair,” Amnesty said.

The watchdog reached out to multiple official Saudi agencies during its investigation. The government’s Human Rights Commission was the only one to respond, saying the special court follows the same rules and procedures of other criminal courts and that all hearings before it were public, with defendants, their lawyers and families present.

However, Amnesty said it documented numerous cases of trials held in secret. Any attempt at appealing the court’s judgments were further conducted behind closed doors, without the presence or participation of defendants or their lawyers.

Judges do not rigorously examine and question prosecutors’ assertions and routinely accept defendants’ confessions as evidence of guilt, even in instances where defendants have told the court they were extracted under torture, Amnesty also said.

At least 20 Shiite Saudi men tried by the court were sentenced to death “on the basis of torture-tainted ‘confessions’,” 17 of whom were executed, the group added.

Like other human rights groups, Amnesty was not permitted to conduct research from inside Saudi Arabia.

The post Amnesty: Saudi ‘Anti-Terror’ Court, A Weapon of Repression appeared first on Iran News Daily.