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Biden Fails a Death Penalty Abolitionist’s Most Important Test

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The mystery of Joe Biden’s views about capital punishment has finally been solved. His decision to grant clemency to 37 of the 40 people on federal death row shows the depth of his opposition to the death penalty. And his decision to leave three of America’s most notorious killers to be executed by a future administration shows the limits of his abolitionist commitment. The three men excluded from Biden’s mass clemency—Dylann Roof, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, and Robert Bowers—would no doubt pose a severe test of anyone’s resolve to end the death penalty. Biden failed that test.
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UK appalled by hangings in Iran

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Foreign Secretary David Milliband said Thursday it was "appalled" by the reported hanging of 2 men in Iran convicted of being Mohareb (enemies of God), the first executions of dissidents since post-election protests.

"I am appalled by reports that Mohammad Reza Ali Zamani and Arash Rahmani Pour were hanged this morning in Iran," said Miliband.

"The trials and now these subsequent executions undermine Iran's claimed commitment to justice, human rights and democratic values."

Their executions were the first reported hangings of people tried after the wave of protests that broke out following the disputed June 12 re-election of hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Miliband praised the determination of protesters, saying they showed "the strength of desire for democracy, human rights and fundamental freedoms amongst ordinary Iranians."

"These latest executions appear to be politically motivated and yet another attempt by the regime to silence dissent," he said.

"I call on the Iranian Government to meet the human rights obligations to which it is committed."

Source: Agence France-Presse, January 29, 2010
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