[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

March 18




IRAN----executions

Iran hangs 12 prisoners on the eve of Persian new year



Since the beginning of March, Iranian regime has executed more than 13 inmates 
in various prisons.

A prisoner identified as Jalaluddin Mosala Nezhad was publicly hanged in 
Jahrom, south of Iran, the state-run Tasnim news agency reported on March 14.

Also on March 13, the state-run IRNA news agency reported that 3 men charged 
with killing 2 armed agents of the regime, were executed in South Khorasan 
province. There is no mention of the exact date and place of execution. The 
state-run media did not elaborate the victims by name.

A day prior to that, the Iranian regime executed another prisoner in Zahedan 
Central Prison, southeastern Iran. He was married and a father of 2 children. 
Some sources have mentioned that he was a former member of Iran’s national 
kickboxing team.

On Tuesday, March 12, a prisoner was hanged in Tabriz Central Prison. He was 
identified as 42-year-old Eslam Farsi.

On March 11, 2 prisoners Shir Mohammad Naroui and Younes Naroui were executed 
on drug related charges in Birjand Prison, northeastern Iran. They were father 
and son.

These executions are carried out after Ebrahim Raisi, one of the men in charge 
of the mass executions in 1988 massacre, was recently appointed as the head of 
Iran’s judiciary by the regime’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei.

During his speech at the inauguration ceremony, Raisi emphasized on the course 
of massacre, execution, and suppression to safeguard the regime in the past 40 
years. He said that he would consider Khamenei’s recent “2nd phase” statement 
as his covenant and that the regime’s security is his absolute priority and 
that justice is subsidiary compared to it.

The UN Secretary General Antonio Gutierrez, and the Special Rapporteur on the 
situation of human rights in Iran, Javaid Rehman, have expressed concerns over 
the increasing number of executions, demanding the regime to stop public 
hangings.

According to the annual report by Iran Human Rights (IHR), at least 13 public 
executions have taken place in Iran in 2018.

During the 40th session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, Javaid 
Rehman, the Special Rapporteur on human rights in Iran, said, “Many of the 
Iranian people have voiced their concern through protests, demonstrations, and 
strikes. People from diverse sections of society – from truck drivers to 
teachers to factory workers – across the country have protested. It is in this 
context of increased challenges that concerns are mounting about human rights, 
including the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and to association in 
Iran.”

“Worrying patterns of intimidation, arrest, prosecution, and ill-treatment of 
human rights defenders, lawyers, and labor rights activists in Iran signal an 
increasingly severe State response to protests and strikes in the country,” 
Rahman said, calling on the Iranian regime to release all those detained for 
exercising theirrights.

Rehman also spoke of the poor conditions of prisoners with dual citizenship, 
the suppression of ethnic and religious minorities, and the fact that since 
2013 at least 33 minors have been executed and 85 are in prison awaiting 
execution.

(source: Iran Human Rights)








IRAQ:

Iraq to hang 2 on terror charges for 2013 assassination in Tikrit



The Iraqi judiciary issued a ruling on Monday to execute 2 individuals 
convicted of participating in the assassination of a police chief in the 
Salahuddin province, along with his aide, 5 years after the incident.

Brigadier General Ahmad al-Batawi and his assistant, Hamada al-Dukhi, were 
killed in late 2013 after an explosive device detonated on their convoy in the 
town of Shirqat, north of Tikrit.

Following this, the security forces arrested a number of suspects. The Supreme 
Judicial Council in a statement claimed the two individuals, during their 
trials, admitted to being involved in the assassination of Batawi and Dukhi 
along with “other defendants.”

The Salahuddin Criminal Court sentenced the two to death by hanging under 
article 4 of the Iraqi Anti-Terrorism Act, the judiciary added, without giving 
further details or mentioning the number or fate of the other defendants.

Authorities have yet to disclose the number of terrorism suspects in Iraqi 
jails, nor the number of people facing execution or life imprisonment related 
to terrorism charges.

International groups and human rights organizations, including the United 
Nations and Human Rights Watch, say efforts by Iraqi authorities to accelerate 
the implementation of death sentences could lead to the execution of innocent 
people, pointing to the nation’s deficient justice system.

The death penalty in Iraq was suspended on June 10, 2003, but was reinstated 
the following year.

(source: kurdistan24.net)








PAKISTAN:

Man awarded death penalty in murder case



A court sentenced an accused to death and acquitted others in a murder case in 
Faisalabad. The judgment was announced by Additional Sessions Judge Imran Javed 
Gul.

The prosecution told the court that Kashif Mehmood, Atif, Sardar Muhammad, 
Nazir Hussain and Ghulam Farid had gunned down a man named Irshad Ahmed and 
injured Kazeez Bibi over a dispute regarding the construction of a wall within 
Satiana police station precincts.

Police registered a case against the culprits and presented the challan before 
the court. After hearing the arguments, the judge handed down a death sentence 
to Kashif and 10 years imprisonment to Atif.

The judge also imposed a fine of Rs0.25 million on the convicts. Meanwhile, the 
court acquitted the other co-accused, giving them the benefit of the doubt due 
to a lack of evidence.

(source: The Express Tribune)

*********************

People secure after Chotu Gang sent on death row



Following death penalty to 20 members of notorious Chotu Gang, the people 
living in riverine area are feeling themselves more secure.

This was stated by CIA (Police) Incharge District Rajanpur Pervez Akhtar Khan 
when APP Multan contacted here on Sunday.

He informed, besides people praising the verdict of court, the police officials 
also satisfied and their morale is high.

He said the people were also lauding the role of Rajanpur police particularly 
Bangla Ichcha for elimination and bringing the notorious gang to justice and 
termed it a big achievement.

He informed that the gang was symbol of terror in the riverine area.

He added that the gang was comprised over 80 members.

However, following death penalty to 20 members of the gang and life 
imprisonment to another 2, the remaining criminals had gone underground or left 
the area. The punishment of death penalty would surely help elimination of 
crimes in the area, said Pervez.

About role of police, Pervez Khan informed that he himself was pursuing the 
case in Anti-Terrorism Court Multan.

He observed that he along with 40 other witnesses recorded statements in the 
courts.

He observed that he and his fellows, were happy to bring the notorious gang to 
justice.

About the case, he informed, On Apr 13 in 2016, police teams from PS Bangla 
Ichcha and other police stations in Rajanpur district, riding boats and armed 
with weapons, had conducted an operation against Chotu Gang criminals and their 
ring leader

Ghulam Rasool alias Chotu targeted their hideout, a forest area that was 
surrounded by river Indus from almost two sides.

The police teams, however, came under attack from the criminals that left six 
policemen including SHO Hanif Ghauri dead and another eight (8) injured.

24 other policemen were taken hostage, however, they were released after 
suffering 9 days of captivity.

Pervez added that he was appointed as SHO Bangla Ichcha following martyrdom of 
SHO Hanif Ghauri. The case against the gang was registered after application 
his own application. Bangla Ichcha police successfully chased the case in ATC-1 
Multan.

Pervez stated, now, he is serving as Incharge CIA district Rajanpur and 
extremely satisfied. ATC-1 awarded death penalty to 20 criminals each on 18 
counts, he said. To a question about issuance of commendatory certificates to 
police officials, he stated that police was duty bound to provide security to 
masses.

He, however, hoped that commendatory certificates would be given to the 
officials.

(source: pakistantoday.com.pk)








INDIA:

Life imprisonment is the rule to which death penalty is the exception, says 
Supreme Court



The judgment was based on an appeal filed by a man sentenced to death for the 
rape and murder of a 5-year-old in Madhya Pradesh.

If a court finds it difficult to make a choice between death penalty and life 
imprisonment, it should opt for the lesser punishment, the Supreme Court said 
in a recent judgment.

“Life imprisonment is the rule to which the death penalty is the exception. The 
death sentence must be imposed only when life imprisonment appears to be an 
altogether inappropriate punishment, having regard to the relevant facts and 
circumstances of the crime,” a Bench of Justices N.V. Ramana, Mohan M. 
Shantanagoudar and Indira Banerjee observed in its March 12 verdict.

The judgment was based on an appeal filed by a man sentenced to death for the 
rape and murder of a five-year-old in Madhya Pradesh. He had promised her 
family to drop her at school where his own daughter was studying, but the 
victim did not return home that day. The school authorities informed the 
parents about the absence of the child. Her body was found in a well.

Both the trial and high courts concluded the man, Sachin Kumar Singhraha, 
deserves death.

Writing the judgment for the Bench, Justice Shantanagoudar agreed the man has 
indeed committed a horrifying crime. It was both heinous and premeditated. He 
had gained the trust of the victim’s family on a false pretext. His intention 
was to gain custody of the child. By this, he had not only abused the faith 
reposed in him but also “exploited the innocence and helplessness of a child as 
young as 5 years of age.”

At the same time, Justice Shantanagoudar said there is a probability that the 
man would reform, considering he never had prior criminal record. The court 
also kept in mind his “overall conduct”.

“With regard to the totality of the facts and circumstances of the case, we are 
of the opinion that the crime in question may not fall under the category of 
cases where the death sentence is necessarily to be imposed,” the court held.

But having commuted his death sentence, the apex court said a life imprisonment 
simplictor would be grossly inadequate. Instead, it ordered, the convict to 
serve his life imprisonment with a minimum of 25 years’ imprisonment without 
remission.

“We have arrived at this conclusion after giving due consideration to the age 
of the accused/appellant, which is currently around 38 to 40 years,” the 
judgment observed.

(source: The Hindu)

********************

SC stays death penalty of man in child rape and murder case



The Supreme Court has stayed the death penalty imposed on a man convicted for 
rape and murder of a 3-month old girl.

A bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and also comprising Justices S 
Abdul Nazeer and Sanjiv Khanna on Thursday stayed the capital punishment given 
to the 25-year-old man who kidnapped, raped and then killed the child.

"There shall be a stay of execution of death sentence of the petitioner," the 
bench said in its order.

In May 2018, a fast-track court in Indore awarded death sentence to Naveen 
alias Ajay Gadke, within 23 days of the crime, following which Gadke filed an 
appeal against the verdict before the Indore bench of the Madhya Pradesh High 
Court.

The high court bench comprising Justices P K Jaiswal and S K Awasthi confirmed 
his conviction and sentence.

Gadke was sentenced to death under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 302 
(murder) and 376A (raping a minor). He was also convicted under the Protection 
of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

He later approached the apex court against the judgment of the high court.

The incident took place on the intervening night of April 19 and 20, 2018 when 
Gadke, a relative of the victim, picked up the child while she was sleeping 
with her mother on the pavement near Rajwada in Indore.

As per the police, he took the child on a bicycle to the basement of a nearby 
commercial building and raped her. When she started crying, he banged her head 
repeatedly which resulted in her death.

The incident came to the fore when a CCTV footage was accessed by the police 
following a missing report filed by the parents of the child. He was arrested 
the same day.

(source: business-standard.com)