Iran's judiciary has commuted the death sentence of a Sunni cleric to a life imprisonment sentence.
Iran's judiciary media outlet, Mizan News Agency, reported that Mohammad Khezrnejad's execution sentence was reduced after he "expressed remorse and commitment to good behavior" and requested an amnesty.
Khezrnejad was arrested in November 2022 amid the anti-government unrest that swept through Iran.
He and his son were detained in the city of Bukan after Khezrnejad delivered a speech at the funeral of a protester killed by security forces.
The cleric was charged with "spreading corruption on Earth, threatening national security, and anti-Islamic Republic propaganda" by the Urmia court, presided over by Judge Reza Najafzadeh.
His sentencing relied heavily on contested confessions that Khezrnejad said were extracted under duress during interrogations.
Human rights monitors have reported that Khezrnejad was also physically assaulted during the arrest process.
He has denied all the accusations against him as baseless.
Source:
Iran Wire, Staff, June 11, 2024
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"One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed,
but by the punishments that the good have inflicted."
— Oscar Wilde
