Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Supreme Leader of Iran, has recently issued an amnesty for "tens of thousands" of those arrested in nationwide anti-government protests. Reports from state media indicate that those charged with espionage and those deemed hostile to the Islamic Republic are excluded from the amnesty. Human rights activists in Iran have reported that more than 19,600 people have been arrested and at least 527 people have been killed due to the protests. Furthermore, four people have been executed after internationally criticized trials.
The decree specifies those charged with "corruption on earth" - a capital charge punishable by death - as well as those accused of murder, injury, destruction and arson of state property, and those who do not express regret for their activities, are ineligible for the amnesty. Iran's prisons and detention facilities have been facing overcrowding as a result of years of protests over economic issues and other matters.
In addition, Iran has been supplying Russia with bomb-carrying drones and is reported to have enough highly enriched uranium to potentially build "several" atomic bombs if it chooses. Opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi has called for a nationwide referendum about writing a new constitution for the Islamic Republic, however it is unlikely that this call will be heeded.