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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.

Execution of Juvenile Offender Postponed in Iran

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Iran executes juvenile offenders
Iran Human Rights (Jan 17, 2018): The execution of Abolfazl Chezahi Sharahi, a juvenile-offender who was in a death-row to be executed this morning at Qom Central Prison, was delayed for unknown reasons. 

A day before, the IHR and other international organizations called for immediate action of the international community. 

According to a close source, authorities had informed Abolfazl Chezahi Sharahi’s family that his execution was scheduled to be carried out on Wednesday, January 17. 

However, the execution of this juvenile-offender was delayed today for unknown reasons and he still stays in danger of execution.

Abolfazl is sentenced to death on the charge of murder during a street fight. 

He was born on January 16, 1999, and he was only 15 at the time of committing the crime on December 26, 2013.

His public defender asked for a checkup by the forensics on July 20, 2014, and the forensics report states: “The 15-year-old defendant who committed murder last winter, is mentally mature and aware of his action (murder).”

The juvenile offender is now 19 and is held at Qom Central Prison (Langaroud). 

Abolfazl could not afford a lawyer; Therefore, Iran Human Rights (IHR) asks Human Rights lawyers who have had similar cases before, to handle his case on the humanitarian basis. 

According to the Iran Human Rights annual report on the death penalty, five juveniles have been executed in 2017. The international laws ban the execution of juveniles.

Source: Iran Human Rights, January 17, 2018


Prisoner Executed in Northern Iran


A prisoner was executed at Babol Prison on murder charges.

According to a report by HRANA, on the morning of Monday, January 15, a prisoner was executed at Babol prison. The 27-year-old prisoner, identified as Y. S., was sentenced to death on murder charges.

The prisoner had murdered his wife 3 years ago.

The execution of this prisoner has not been announced by the state-run media so far.

According to Iran Human Rights annual report on the death penalty, 142 of the 530 execution sentences in 2016 were implemented due to murder charges. 

There is a lack of any classification of murder by degree in Iran which results in issuing a death sentence for all types of the murder regardless of intensity and intent.

Source: Iran Human Rights, January 16, 2018


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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: Qom, Qom Province, Iran
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