Iran pardons sentences for over 2,200 convicts

TEHRAN: Iran’s supreme leader has pardoned or commuted the sentences of more than 2,200 prisoners, including some on death row, to mark two important Muslim feasts, official sources said on Sunday.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei "granted pardons or commuted the sentences of 2,272 convicts" for the Eidul Azha and Ghadir religious holidays, which both fall this month, a statement on his website said.

The supreme leader routinely grants collective pardons on major religious occasions, in coordination with the head of the judiciary. The judiciary’s website, Mizan Online, said 43 of the prisoners had been sentenced to death.

Last week, Muslims across the world celebrated Eidul Azha, which marks the end of the Haj pilgrimage. Some 900,000 pilgrims visited holy sites in Saudi Arabia for this year’s Haj, one of the five pillars of Islam.