(Iran) Eight women and one man to be stoned to death for adultery
Much of the relaunched Daou Report's focus is on human rights abuses and violence around the world (and on those who work to reduce it). Here's a barbaric example from Iran:
Iran has sentenced eight women and one man convicted of adultery to death by stoning, activists said Sunday. A lawyer and women's rights activist, Shadi Sadr, said the nine, who are between 27 and 50 years old, were convicted of adultery in separate cases in different Iranian cities. Trial protocol was not applied properly in the cases, she said.Six of the nine were convicted based solely on judges' decisions with no witnesses or the presence of their lawyers during their confessions, said Sadr, who has been leading a campaign in Iran against stoning deaths. "Their verdicts are approved, and they may be executed at any time," she told reporters. "We are trying to stop the implementation of their verdicts. And we want to amend the country's penal law, in which death by stoning is prescribed."
Under Iran's Islamic laws, adultery is the only capital offense punishable by stoning. A man is usually buried up to his waist, while a woman is buried up to her neck. Those carrying out the verdict then throw stones until the condemned dies.
UPDATED 7.31.08
LATEST Iran on Sunday hanged 29 men convicted of offenses including drug trafficking, murder and rape in the largest mass execution in years as the country says it is fighting increasing crime.
The hangings were carried out inside the notorious Tehran's Evin prison at 5:10 am (0040 GMT), the state broadcaster said. The latest hangings bring to at least 155 the number of executions in Iran this year, according to an AFP count. Amnesty International reported that in 2007 Iran applied the death penalty more often than any other country apart from China, executing 317 people.
Those executed on Sunday had records of repeated crimes including rape, murder with torture and armed robbery, the report said. It also listed charges including drug trafficking, drinking alcohol and possessing ammunition. ...
Earlier this month parliament was reported to be considering a bill which could see the death penalty also being imposed on those deemed to promote corruption, prostitution and apostasy on the Internet. [emphasis added]
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