The three-judge panel dismissed Tarrant’s claim that harsh prison conditions and poor mental health had caused him to plead guilty involuntarily in March 2020, concluding there was no evidence he had suffered from a mental impairment that affected his legal judgment.

“He was not suffering from a mental impairment or any other form of mental incapacity which rendered him unable to voluntarily change his pleas to guilty,” the judges wrote in their decision.

The court said the Australian national, now 35, had attempted to mislead judges about his mental state in what it described as “a weak attempt to advance an appeal,” adding that evidence showed he had made an informed and rational decision when he admitted guilt.

Tarrant carried out the attacks in March 2019, driving to two mosques in Christchurch during Friday prayers and opening fire with semiautomatic weapons, killing 51 people and injuring dozens more in New Zealand’s deadliest modern mass shooting.

His guilty pleas a year later spared victims’ families and survivors from a lengthy public trial, which many feared would give him a platform to spread extremist views.The appeal court noted that Tarrant’s bid to challenge those pleas was filed 505 days after the legal deadline, but it proceeded to hear the matter because of its public significance.

During a five-day hearing in February, Tarrant argued that “irrationality” caused by poor mental health had temporarily led him to abandon his white supremacist ideology and plead guilty.

The judges rejected that argument, saying prison staff, mental health professionals and his former lawyers did not support his claims. They also noted that he had accepted the summary of facts presented by police and the sentencing judge, while the evidence against him was overwhelming.

That evidence included video footage of the attack that Tarrant filmed himself and livestreamed online, clearly showing his face, as well as a manifesto outlining his racist ideology that he published under his real name before the shootings.

The ruling also disclosed that Tarrant sought to abandon the appeal shortly after presenting his case in February, but judges refused, saying the matter was of “significant public interest and should be finally determined.”They said he appeared to conclude the hearing was not going in his favor and then attempted to withdraw the case after proceedings ended.

Tarrant was sentenced in August 2020 to life imprisonment without parole, the first such sentence in New Zealand’s history. He remains in Auckland Prison.The judges allowed him to abandon a separate appeal against that sentence, which had been scheduled to be heard later in 2026.

The pardon was announced during clemency measures marking the Full Moon Day of Kason, observed as Buddha’s Birthday and Demise, with state media reporting that 1,519 prisoners, including 11 foreigners, were granted amnesty and sentences for remaining convicted inmates were reduced by one-sixth.

Two legal officials familiar with the matter said the measure would further reduce Suu Kyi’s sentence by one-sixth, though they did not specify the exact number of years remaining. Based on previous sentence reductions, the 80-year-old is expected to still have more than 13 years left to serve.

The amnesty is the second in two weeks, following an earlier pardon on April 17 in which more than 4,500 prisoners were released and prison terms under 40 years were cut by one-sixth.

It was not immediately clear how many political prisoners detained for opposing military rule were included in Thursday’s latest clemency.Suu Kyi was arrested on Feb. 1, 2021, when the military seized power from her elected government, ending a decade of partial civilian rule and triggering nationwide protests that later evolved into a prolonged armed conflict.

She was originally sentenced to 33 years in prison in late 2022 on multiple charges ranging from corruption to election-related offenses, cases widely criticized by her supporters and international rights groups as politically motivated and designed to legitimize the army’s takeover while blocking her return to public life.

Her sentence was first reduced to 27 years in August 2023 and was cut again by more than four years during the April 17 amnesty.She is believed to be serving her sentence at an undisclosed location in Naypyitaw, Myanmar’s capital, under tightly controlled conditions.

There were reports last week that she could be moved to house arrest as part of the latest clemency measures, but authorities have not confirmed such a transfer.Information about her health remains limited. Reports in recent years have suggested declining health, including low blood pressure, dizziness and heart-related concerns, though these accounts have not been independently verified.

Her legal team has not been permitted to meet her in person since December 2022.The military government is now led by Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, who was sworn in as president on April 10 following an election widely criticized by opponents as neither free nor fair and designed to preserve military control.

In his inauguration speech, Min Aung Hlaing said his administration would grant amnesties aimed at promoting social reconciliation, justice and peace.According to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, more than 22,000 people have been detained in Myanmar since the coup, while the conflict that followed has killed thousands.

Before her latest imprisonment, Suu Kyi had already spent nearly 15 years under house arrest between 1989 and 2010 for opposing military rule, a struggle that made her an international symbol of democratic resistance and earned her the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize.

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Kabli, 23, who performs under the stage name L7assal and is also a member of the banned but tolerated Islamist movement Al Adl Wal Ihssane, had been sentenced in March after being arrested on charges of insulting a public body and undermining respect for constitutional institutions.

The charges carry a maximum sentence of four years in prison under Moroccan law.Speaking after the appeal hearing in the northeastern city of Taza, lawyer Mohammed Taifi said the ruling was unjustified and argued that his client had only exercised his right to express opinions without intending to offend state institutions or public officials.

“It’s an error of judgment. There was no intention to offend anyone, nor were there any explicitly offensive remarks,” Taifi said.He said Kabli had told the court that his music and social media posts were aimed at expressing views on corruption and foreign policy issues, including Rabat’s decision to normalize relations with Israel, rather than insulting individuals or constitutional bodies.

The case has drawn criticism from rights advocates, with the Moroccan Association for Human Rights calling for Kabli’s release and for all charges to be dropped.The group described the prosecution as a political attempt to restrict freedom of expression and silence dissenting voices.

Morocco normalized ties with Israel in 2020 under a U.S.-backed agreement that generated domestic debate, particularly among Islamist groups and pro-Palestinian activists.

Al Adl Wal Ihssane, though officially banned, remains one of Morocco’s most influential opposition Islamist movements and frequently criticizes government policy.

The conviction is part of a broader investigation into the embezzlement of funds allocated for border defense infrastructure in the Kursk region, which borders Ukraine.

Authorities have pursued multiple former officials in the region following allegations that money intended to strengthen frontier defenses was misappropriated.

Parts of the Kursk region were seized by Ukrainian forces for several months in 2024, underscoring its strategic importance.

Details of the specific charges against Smirnov were not immediately disclosed, but the case reflects an ongoing crackdown on corruption linked to defense spending in border areas.