Protests in Iran: Supreme leader pardons 'large number' of prisoners In a first acknowledgement of the scale of the crackdown, Iran's Supreme leader pardoned "tens of thousands" of prisoners detained in the wake of mass anti-government protests. Authorities though still have yet to say exactly how many people have been arrested for their roles in the demonstrations. The decree, which came on the eve of the anniversary of the 1979 islamic revolution, also came with a list of caveats as Jennie Shin explains.