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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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Three Prisoners Hanged in Western Iran

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Iran Human Rights (DEC 29 2015): On Saturday December 26, three prisoners on death row for alleged drug offenses were reportedly hanged at Parsilon Prison in Khorramabad (in the province of Lorestan, western Iran).

According to the human rights group, HRANA, the names of the prisoners are: Behrouz Amiry, Rahman Kazemzadeh, and Ali Hasanvand.

Hours before they were hanged to death, a video was released showing the three prisoners pleading for their lives.

Iranian official sources, including the Judiciary, have been silent on these three executions.

Source: Iran Human Rights, December 29, 2015

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Location: Khorram Abad, Lorestan, Iran
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