Iran: 20-year-old boy hanged in public for "immoral acts"

Witnessing a public execution in Iran (file photo)

Three prisoners were hanged in public two different cities of Khorasan-Razavi Province today. One of the prisoners was hanged charged with the vague charges of “immoral acts”. Iran Human Rights calls for international condemnation of the recent wave of public executions in Iran.

Iran Human Rights, November 27, 2014: Three prisoners were hanged publicly in the cities of Mashhad and Joghatai today, reported the Iranian state media.

According to the state run Iranian news agency Fars the prisoner who was hanged in Joghatai (a twon near Mashhad) was identified as “M. Gh.” (20 year old), originally sentenced to death for murder (Qesas- retribution) and for immoral acts. The prisoner was later pardoned by the family of the murder victim, but he was executed for “immoral acts”. The report added that “M. Gh”. has sent request of pardon for immoral acts but his request was not granted by the Province Commission. There are no further specifications of what “immoral acts” the prisoner was sentenced to death for.

Two other prisoners identified as “Ali M.” and “Ali Gh.” were hanged in Mashhad at 9.15 AM this morning, reported Asr-e-Iran news site. The prisoners were charged with “offences like theft, murder, disruption of order and spreading fear among the people” said the report.

Iran Human Rights (IHR) strongly condemns the new execution wave in Iran. Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, the spokesperson of IHR said: “The international community must react to the wave of the executions in Iran. Besides being barbaric and inhumane, the charges used by the Iranian authorities are often vague and many of the executions are arbitrary”.

Source: Iran Human Rights, November 28, 2014

Iran: Seven more hanged as executions soar under Hassan Rouhani

NCRI - Seven more prisoners have been hanged in public in Iran as executions continue to soar under Hassan Rouhani's rule.

More than 1,000 men, women and youths have now been put to death her the so-called 'moderate' leader who came to power 18 months ago.

On Wednesday, two men named as Ali M and Ali Q were hanged in public for 'mischief' in north-eastern city of Mashhad.

A group of five inmates were hanged in Gohardasht prison in city of Karaj. They were part of a group of nine that had been transferred to isolation on Tuesday. Four others they were returned to their cells after their execution had been delayed.

The two men were also hanged in the Ghasem Abbad district of the city of Mashhad at 9.30am local time today.

A video distributed on the internet this week shows the grief-stricken family members of eight executed prisoners mourning their loved-ones, whose bodies in black bags are lined up before them in a mortuary.

The video was secretly recorded on a mobile phone by an eyewitness who said a group of people are hanged secretly every Thursday in the city of Kerman.

The eyewitness said: "Many of the executions in this city are for possession of drugs offences. Usually these are young people who have grown up as orphans and due to poverty are now the sole breadwinner for their families."

Soaring human rights abuses in Iran, including an unprecedented rise in executions, the wave of state-organized acid attacks against women, and the continuing repression of religious and ethnic minorities, bloggers, reporters and activists are all taking place amid growing public discontent with the regime, but also in the absence of international action regarding the ongoing violation of human rights.

Source: NCRI, November 27, 2014

Singapore executes three drug mules over two days

Singapore hanged three people for drug offences last week, bringing the total number of executions to 17 this year - the highest since 2003. These come a week before a constitutional challenge against the death penalty for drug offences is due to be heard. Singapore has some of the world's harshest anti-drug laws, which it says are a necessary deterrent to drug crime, a major issue elsewhere in South East Asia. Anyone convicted of trafficking - which includes selling, giving, transporting or administering - more than 15g of diamorphine, 30g of cocaine, 250g of methamphetamine and 500g of cannabis in Singapore will be handed the death sentence.

Florida | After nearly 50 years on death row, Tommy Zeigler seeks final chance at freedom

The Winter Garden Police chief was at a party on Christmas Eve 1975 when he received a phone call from his friend Tommy Zeigler, the owner of a furniture store on Dillard Street. “I’ve been shot, please hurry,” Zeigler told the chief as he struggled for breath. When police arrived at the store, Zeigler, 30, managed to unlock the door and then collapsed “with a gaping bullet hole through his lower abdomen,” court records show. In the store, detectives found a gruesome, bloody crime scene and several guns. Four other people — Zeigler’s wife, his in-laws and a laborer — lay dead.

Louisiana death row inmate freed after nearly 30 years as overturned conviction upends case

A Louisiana man who spent nearly 30 years on death row walked out of prison Wednesday after a judge overturned his conviction and granted him bail. Jimmie Duncan, now in his 60s, was sentenced to death in 1998 for the alleged rape and drowning of his girlfriend’s 23-month-old daughter, Haley Oliveaux — a case long clouded by disputed forensic testimony. His release comes months after a state judge ruled that the evidence prosecutors used to secure the conviction was unreliable and rooted in discredited bite-mark analysis.

Vietnam | Woman sentenced to death for poisoning 4 family members with cyanide

A woman in Dong Nai Province in southern Vietnam was sentenced to death on Thursday for killing family members including two young children in a series of cyanide poisonings that shocked her community. The Dong Nai People's Court found 39-year-old Nguyen Thi Hong Bich guilty of murder and of illegally possessing and using toxic chemicals. Judges described her actions as "cold-blooded, inhumane and calculated," saying Bich exploited the trust of her victims and "destroyed every ethical bond within her family."

Oklahoma board recommends clemency for inmate set to be executed next week

A voting board in Oklahoma decided Wednesday to recommend clemency for Tremane Wood, a death row inmate who is scheduled to receive a lethal injection next week at the state penitentiary in McAlester. Wood, 46, faces execution for his conviction in the 2001 murder of Ronnie Wipf, a migrant farmworker, at an Oklahoma City hotel on New Year's Eve, court records show. The recommendation was decided in a 3-2 vote by the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board, consisting of five members appointed by either the governor or the state's top judicial official, according to CBS News affiliate KWTV. Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Sitt will consider the recommendation as he weighs whether to grant or deny Wood's clemency request, which would mean sparing him from execution and reducing his sentence to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Utah | Ralph Menzies dies on death row less than 3 months after his execution was called off

Judge was set to consider arguments in December about Menzies’ mental fitness Ralph Menzies, who spent more than 3 decades on Utah’s death row for the 1986 murder of Maurine Hunsaker, has died. Menzies, 67, died of “presumed natural causes at a local hospital” Wednesday afternoon, according to the Utah Department of Corrections. Matt Hunsaker, Maurine Hunsaker’s son, said Menzies’ death “was a complete surprise.” “First off, I’d say that I’m numb. And second off, I would say, grateful,” Hunsaker told Utah News Dispatch. “I’m grateful that my family does not have to endure this for the holidays.”

Afghanistan's Taliban rulers carry out public execution in sports stadium

The man had been convicted of killing 13 members of a family, including children, and was executed by one of their relatives, according to police. Afghanistan's Taliban authorities carried out the public execution of a man on Tuesday convicted of killing 13 members of a family, including several children, earlier this year. Tens of thousands of people attended the execution at a sports stadium in the eastern city of Khost, which the Supreme Court said was the eleventh since the Taliban seized power in 2021 in the wake of the chaotic withdrawal of US and NATO forces.

Afghanistan | Two Sons Of Executed Man Also Face Death Penalty, Says Taliban

The Taliban governor’s spokesperson in Khost said on Tuesday that two sons of a man executed earlier that day have also been sentenced to death. Their executions, he said, have been postponed because the heir of the victims is not currently in Afghanistan. Mostaghfer Gurbaz, spokesperson for the Taliban governor in Khost, also released details of the charges against the man executed on Tuesday, identified as Mangal. He said Mangal was accused of killing members of a family.

Iran carries out public hanging of "double-rapist"

Iran on Tuesday publicly executed a man after convicting him of raping two women in the northern province of Semnan. The execution was carried out in the town of Bastam after the Supreme Court upheld the verdict, the judiciary's official outlet Mizan Online reported. Mizan cited the head of the provincial judiciary, Mohammad Akbari, as saying the ruling had been 'confirmed and enforced after precise review by the Supreme Court'. The provincial authority said the man had 'deceived two women and committed rape by force and coercion', adding that he used 'intimidation and threats' to instil fear of reputational harm in the victims.

Kuwait | New Anti-Drug Law Introduces Death Penalty, Surprise Testing, and Strict Enforcement

KUWAIT CITY, Nov 26: Divorce rates in Kuwait are rising, with recent statistics indicating that addiction—particularly among wives—has become a significant contributing factor. In response, authorities are preparing to introduce surprise premarital drug testing as part of a broader set of reforms under Kuwait’s new drug law. The countdown has officially begun for the enforcement of this new legislation, which was drafted by a judicial committee formed by the First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, Sheikh Fahd Al-Yousef. The committee is headed by Counselor Mohammed Rashid Al-Duaij.

Death Penalty News

Search This Blog