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After acquittal of ex-death row inmate, debate needed on Japan's death penalty

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Japan should be ensuring the safety of its citizens, but instead it is taking people's lives. Is it acceptable to maintain the ultimate penalty under such circumstances? This is a serious question for society. The acquittal of 88-year-old Iwao Hakamada, who had been handed the death penalty, has been finalized after prosecutors decided not to appeal the verdict issued by the Shizuoka District Court during his retrial.

Iran: 18 Executions for Drug-Related Charges in One Day

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18 people were executed in three different Iranian prisons on Tuesday [Dec. 2, 2014] according to unofficial sources. All the prisoners were convicted of drug-related charges and there were two women and one Afghan citizen among them.

Iran Human Rights, December 2, 2014: Eleven prisoners were hanged in the Ghezelhesar prison of Karaj (west of Tehran) early Tuesday morning 2. December, reported the human rights activists news agency (HRANA) and the human rights and democracy activists in Iran (HRDAI). All the prisoners were convicted of drug-related charges according to the report. Iran Human Rights (IHR) has confirmed the executions.

HRDAI has identified seven of the prisoners by name and and claimed that there was one woman and one Afghan citizen among the prisoners executed on Tuesday.

HRANA also reported about seven other executions in two different prisons on Tuesday. Three male prisoners identified as Yadollah Fahimi, Mokhtar Davoudkhah and one female prisoner identified as Marziye Ostavari were hanged in the prison of Urmia (Northwestern Iran). Three other prisoners were hanged in the prison of Bandar Abbas (Southern Iran). These prisoners were identified as Ali Akbar Nouraddini, Alireza Ghorbani and Hossein Shahozehi. All the prisoners were convicted of drug related charges.

Iran is the country with the highest number of executions for drug-related charges. This is despite the fact that drug-related charges are not considered as the most serious crimes by the international law.

Large number of executions in Iran are not announced by the official Iranian media.

Source: Iran Human Rights, December 3, 2014
Location: Iran
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