Iran's supreme leader to pardon 10,000 prisoners, including political ones

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei will pardon 10,000 prisoners including political ones in honour of the Iranian new year on Friday, state TV reported.

"Those who will be pardoned will not return to jail ... almost half of those security-related prisoners will be pardoned as well," judiciary spokesman Gholamhossein Esmaili told state TV on Wednesday. On Tuesday, Esmaili said Iran had temporarily freed about 85,000 people from jail, including political prisoners, in response to the coronavirus epidemic.

Esmaili did not say whether British-Iranian aid worker Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe who was temporarily released on Tuesday for two weeks was among those who would be among those who will be pardoned. The United States has urged Iran to free dozens of dual nationals and foreigners held mainly on spying charges, saying Washington would hold the Tehran government directly responsible for any American deaths.