‘Deceived’ Protesters Offered Reprieve

Iran's Chief Justice claims the case of those who were 'deceived' to take part in recent anti-government protests has been closed.

Alleging that scores of Iranians only took part in protests due to foreign influence, undermining the strength of the Woman, Life, Freedom movement which has seen hundreds of thousands of Iranians calling for the end of the brutal dictatorship, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei said: “Due to last year's riots, which were planned by the enemies [the US, Israel and Western allies], the number of cases received by the Judiciary increased by more than 4 percent."

He said judges handled more than 20,000 "riot cases", a term the regime uses to describe the nationwide anti-government protests. It is unknown if those released had been forced to confess to foreign influence, a tool commonly used by the regime to negotiate with prisoners and quash dissent.

After a wave of nationwide anti-government protests last year which has still yet to subside, the Iranian regime has embarked on a wave of executions which has seen dozens of prisoners hanged this year.

The regime used overwhelming force with military weapons in its crackdown on the protests, killing more than 500 civilians. Hundreds of other protestors suffered permanent injuries, including the loss of eyes when shotgun pellets were fired at the faces of demonstrators. More than 20,000 people were arrested.