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U.S. Presidential Election 2024: Death penalty absent from campaign, but not from minds

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Kamala Harris, once openly opposed to the death penalty despite political costs, now avoids the topic as a candidate. Meanwhile, Donald Trump advocates tougher criminal policies, though presidential authority in this area is limited. A few blocks from downtown Richmond, Virginia, the intersection of Spring Street and Belvidere Street now presents a completely different view. Where once stood a grim, old brick building, there is now a modern building with a glass facade reflecting the sun shining on Virginia’s capital. Trees along the wide Belvidere Street give the neighborhood a promenade-like feel, with the James River flowing nearby along the memorial for American war dead.

Iran | Executions in Ghaen, Torbat Jam

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Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); July 26, 2024: Motiollah Barkezi, an Afghan national on death row for drug-related charges, was executed in Ghaen Prison.

According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, an Afghan man was executed in Ghaen Prison in South Khorasan province on 24 July. His identity has been established as Motiollah Barkezi, a 40-year-old father to two children from the border village of Mahi Roud.

Per informed IHRNGO sources, Motiollah was arrested at the entrance of Ghaen city four and a half years ago and sentenced to death for drug-related charges by the Revolutionary Court.

At the time of writing, his execution has not been reported by domestic media or officials in Iran.

Drug-related executions have continuously risen every year since 2021. According to IHRNGO’s 2023 Annual Report on the Death Penalty, at least 471 people were executed for drug-related charges, an 84% increase compared to 2022 (256) and about 18 times the average of drug-related executions in 2018-2020. In the first six months of 2024, at least 147 people were executed for the charges.

On 10 April 2024, 80+ Iranian and international organisations and groups called for joint action to stop drug-related executions, urging UNODC to make “any cooperation with the Islamic Republic contingent on a complete halt on drug-related executions.”

Man Executed for Drug Offences in Torbat Jam


Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); July 26, 2024: Ghader Jamshidi, a man on death row for drug-related charges, was executed in Torbat Jam Prison.

According to HRANA news agency, a man was executed in Torbat Jam Prison on 25 July. His identity has been reported as Ghader Jamshidi, a father of three from Torbat Jam.

He was sentenced to death for drug-related charges by the Revolutionary Court.

At the time of writing, his execution has not been reported by domestic media or officials in Iran.

Source: Iran Human Rights, Staff, July 26, 2024

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"One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed,
but by the punishments that the good have inflicted."

— Oscar Wilde



Location: Iran
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