May 29
MALI:
Unmarried couple stoned to death in Mali for 'violating Islamic law'----The man
and woman were put in 2 holes dug by ringleaders before 4 people attacked them,
local official says
An unmarried couple have been stoned to death in public in north-east Mali, in
the first such incident since jihadi groups were driven out of the region.
Jihadis seized key northern cities in Mali in March 2012, and though they were
driven out by a French-led military intervention in 2013, Islamist groups
continue to make their presence felt with frequent attacks on domestic and
foreign forces.
"The Islamists dug 2 holes where they put the man and the woman who lived
maritally without being married," said a local official. "They were stoned to
death." The execution happened in Taghlit, close to Aguelhok in the Kidal
region, on Tuesday. The same source told AFP that members of the public were
invited to take part.
"4 people threw stones at them until they died," they said.
Another local official said the ringleaders had accused the unmarried couple of
violating "Islamic law", which requires punishment by stoning.
During their brief control of key towns in the north, jihadist groups imposed a
version of Sharia law which forced women to wear veils and set whipping and
stoning as punishment for transgressions.
In July 2012, the Al-Qaida-linked Ansar Dine group stoned a couple in public in
Aguelhok they had accused of having children outside marriage.
The Malian Association for the Defence of Human Rights described Tuesday's
stoning as "cowardly murder".
"This is barbaric. The people who did this should be arrested and put on
trial," said Oumar Diakite, an AMDH official.
The opposition Parena party meanwhile noted that 309 people had been killed
since the beginning of the year by armed groups, describing "alarm at the
deterioration of the security situation" 2 years after the signature of a peace
deal.
That accord was aimed at ending successive uprisings by Tuareg rebels, who
signed the deal along with the government and pro-Bamako militias in the hope
of bringing stability to the north.
The last Tuareg rebellion in 2012 was hijacked by the Islamists, throwing the
country into chaos.
The stoning comes on the eve of an expected visit to Mali by the French
president, Emmanuel Macron, who is due to meet French troops stationed there on
Thursday or Friday.
A UN mission known by its acronym Minusma has also been stationed in the west
African country since 2013 and is considered the world body's most dangerous
active peacekeeping deployment.
(source: theguardian.com)
IRAN----execution
Prisoner Hanged on Drug Charges
A prisoner was reportedly hanged at Zanjan Prison on the morning of Wednesday
May 24 on drug related charges.
Close sources have identified the prisoner as Abdollah Ghaderzadeh, 34 years
old, arrested in 2012 on the charge of possession and trafficking 2 kilograms
of heroin and 1 kilogram and 200 grams of crystal meth, sentenced to death by
the revolutionary court in Zanjan.
Sources close to Mr. Ghaderzadeh say that the Iranian authorities had promised
to commute his death sentence to 30 years in prison.
Iranian parliament members had formerly requested from the Judiciary to stop
drug related executions for at least 5.000 prisoners pending further
investigation. However, the request has not stopped the Judiciary from carrying
out death sentences for prisoners with drug related charges.
(source: Iran Human Rights)
SAUDI ARABIA:
Saudi court upholds death sentence for disabled man 'tortured for confession' -
rights group
Saudi Arabia has upheld a death sentence for a disabled man, arrested in 2012
on suspicion of taking part in protests and then tortured until he signed a
"false confession," according to a rights group. The decision leaves the man
with 1 last appeal before King Salman makes his execution official.
Munir Adam, 23, was arrested in 2012 for allegedly taking part in protests in
the Eastern Province. According to Reprieve, a rights group of international
lawyers and investigators, Saudi police "tortured" the man and "forced him to
sign a false confession," which then served "as the sole piece of evidence
against him."
Adam, who already had impaired sight and hearing, allegedly lost complete
hearing in one ear as a result of the beatings.
Following the Specialized Criminal Court's ruling, the accused can now appeal
his sentence one last time before the Saudi monarch, King Salman, signs the
execution warrant.
Reprieve director Maya Foa described his case as "utterly shocking" and urged
US president Donald Trump to "call for the release of Munir, and all others who
face execution for simply exercising freedom of expression."
The decision comes shortly after Trump's 1st visit to the kingdom last week,
which was praised by the US commerce secretary Wilbur Ross for not having "a
single hint of a protester anywhere there during the whole time" they were
there.
"The White House should be appalled that our Saudi allies tortured a disabled
protester until he lost his hearing then sentenced him to death on the basis of
a forced confession," Foa said in a statement.
"Today's judgment shows that, by failing to raise human rights abuses in Saudi
Arabia, President Trump has emboldened the Kingdom to continue the torture and
execution of protesters," she added.
Reprieve also brought attention to the cases of another 3 juveniles also at
risk of being executed. The young men, also arrested on protest-related
allegations, potentially face execution by beheading and crucifixion.
Saudi Arabia is among the world's top 5 executioners, with at least 154 death
penalties carried out in 2016, according to Amnesty International.
(source: rt.com)
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