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Communist Vietnam's secret death penalty conveyor belt: How country trails only China and Iran for 'astonishing' number of executions

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Prisoners are dragged from their cells at 4am without warning to be given a lethal injection Vietnam's use of the death penalty has been thrust into the spotlight after a real estate tycoon was on Thursday sentenced to be executed in one of the biggest corruption cases in the country's history. Truong My Lan, a businesswoman who chaired a sprawling company that developed luxury apartments, hotels, offices and shopping malls, was arrested in 2022.

Iraq justice ministry announces execution of 22 convicts

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Baghdad Iraq
Amnesty International has said that recent trials resulting in death sentences have been 'grossly unfair'

Iraq has executed 22 people over the past month who were convicted of terrorism and other crimes, the justice minister announced on Monday.

The ministry "carried out death sentences against 22 convicts condemned for crimes and terrorist acts," Justice Minister Haidar al-Zamili said in a statement.

It also quoted Zamili as saying that with the start of the Iraqi operation to retake the city of Fallujah from the Islamic State (IS) group, "we confirm ... that the ministry is continuing to carry out just punishment against terrorists."

Rights group Amnesty International said that Baghdad executed at least 26 people in 2015.

Iraq sentenced nearly 100 people to death within the first 2 months of 2016, the group said in a February report.

"The vast majority of the trials have been grossly unfair, with many of the defendants claiming to have been tortured into 'confessing' the crimes," James Lynch, Amnesty's Middle East and North Africa deputy director said.

Amnesty called on the Iraqi leadership to stop ratifying executions and begin a process to abolish the death penalty.

Iraq has faced widespread criticism from diplomats, analysts and human rights groups who say that due to a flawed justice system, those being executed are not necessarily guilty of the crimes for which they were sentenced to die.

But the country has repeatedly defied such criticism and continues carrying out executions.

Source: Middle East Eye, May 25, 2016

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Location: Iraq
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