June 19
TRINIDAD:
Time to carry out death penalty swiftly
As of June 13 - we have a documented murder toll of 249. We have more murders
than days in the year at this juncture. The murder rate per capita in Trinidad,
reported by United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), is 31 per 100,000
persons and stood at 11th in the world and 6th in the Caribbean.
This issue of the escalating homicide rate and mechanisms to ameliorate it are
multi-faceted. While the issue of depleting the homicide rate involves a
multi-dimensional approach where some tools (such as moral education, more
vocational programmes, increasing the social responsibility of the
denominational churches, increasing temporary relief programmes, looking at
proper rehabilitation programmes that are geared to minimising repeat
offenders, mentoring programmes) will assist in the long-term. We must look at
what is required now given a most horrendous and unspeakable murder rate.
New York state that has over 20 million people has a far lower homicide rate
that Trinidad and Tobago has had for the longest. Imagine from 2002-2009, we
had over 3,000 homicides (excluding other serious crimes like shooting and
wounding with intent to kill, rape).
Theopilus Mendez Diego Martin
(source: Letter to the Editor, Trinidad Express)
IRAN----execution
Dervish Member Executed----Serious Allegations of Torture to Force Confession
Iran's judiciary executed Mohammad Sallas, a Dervish minority member, on June
18, 2018, Human Rights Watch said today. He was convicted after a trial that
raises serious concerns about its fairness, and despite serious allegations
that the authorities tortured him in detention. Sallas???s family was allowed
to bury his body in Boroujerd cemetery in Lorestan province, in western Iran,
under a heavy security presence, though activists reported that his children
were not allowed to view his body.
On March 18, after a rapid trial that concluded only a few weeks after his
arrest, and allegations of police torture to elicit a forced confession, the
court sentenced Sallas, 46, to death. He was charged with killing 3 police
officers by driving a bus into a crowd of security officers during the clashes
that broke out after security forces violently repressed a demonstration of
Dervish community members on February 19 and 20.
"The Iranian judiciary's determination to execute Sallas after rushing his
trial and sentence despite serious allegations of torture betrays the legal
system's core function of upholding justice," said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle
East director at Human Rights Watch. "Instead of conducting an independent
investigation into the security incidents during the February Dervish protests
and granting all the accused a fair trial, authorities have once again shown
their disdain for due process or defendants' rights."
Based on the Supreme Court's verdict, which Zeinab Taheri, Sallas's lawyer,
published, the sole piece of evidence used to determine in court that Sallas
was driving the bus that killed 3 police officers was the confession that
Sallas said he gave after police officers severely beat him. After the trial,
on May 15, Taheri told the Center for Human Rights in Iran that authorities had
beaten Sallas so hard that he almost lost his eyesight and afterward had
serious hearing problems, and that it was under these conditions that he made
the confession. He repeated this confession in his 1st court session, saying
that he drove into the police officers, but did it out of anger over their
actions and had not intended to kill anyone.
Sallas said that police also had severely beaten him before the bus driving
incident, causing serious head injuries.
On June 17, Narges Sallas, Sallas's daughter, told Human Rights Watch that
authorities had broken Sallas's finger after he told the judge during his 2nd
trial session that he did not remember driving the bus toward the police. There
is no evidence that the courts considered the allegations of torture.
On May 23, Taheri told media that she had filed for an appeal at branch 35 of
Tehran's Supreme Court, but the court rejected it. On June 12, Mahmoud Jafari
Dolatabadi, the Tehran prosecutor, told journalists at a news conference that
Sallas would be executed after Ramadan. During the holy month of Ramadan, which
ended in Iran on June 15, the Iranian government rarely carries out executions.
Since the February demonstrations, about 400 Dervish community members facing
vaguely defined security charges have remained in detention. On May 28, Jafari
Dolatabadi told journalists that verdicts had been issued against 67 of them.
On May 27, Faeze Abadipour, a member of the Dervish community, tweeted that
authorities had sentenced 23 members to a total of 119 years in prison, plus
time in exile and flogging.
Attacks on police forces are criminal acts, but Iranian authorities should
ensure that all convictions are based on individual determinations of guilt
after fair trials and not extend criminal responsibility to an entire group of
protesters, Human Rights Watch said. Human Rights Watch opposes the death
penalty in all circumstances because it is an inherently irreversible, inhumane
punishment.
Under international law, torture, as well as cruel, inhuman, or degrading
treatment, is banned at all times, in all places. No national emergency,
however dire, ever justifies its use, or the use of evidence obtained by
torture.
Under international law, everyone is allowed to participate in lawful and
peaceful assemblies, based on the principles embodied in the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights (ICCPR), to which Iran is a party. The United Nations Basic
Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials
require them to avoid the use of force when dispersing assemblies that are
unlawful but nonviolent or, if that is not practicable, to restrict such force
to the minimum extent necessary.
Article 14 of the ICCPR also requires Iran to ensure the right to a fair trial
for anyone brought before the criminal courts. This includes the right "to have
adequate time and facilities for the preparation of his defense and to
communicate with counsel of his own choosing." The Iranian authorities should
charge detainees only with a recognizable crime and ensure the right to a fair
trial for anyone charged, Human Rights Watch said.
(source: Human Rights Watch)
**************************
Strong Condemnation of the Brutal Execution of Mohammad Salas by Iran Regime
The office of Mr. Gerard Deprez, MEP, Chair of the Friends of a Free Iran in
European Parliament has issued this statement today.
It is with great regret and outrage that we heard this morning, Monday 18 June
2018, Islamic Republic of Iran executed an innocent man from the country's Sufi
religious minority.
Mohammad Salas, 51, a Gonabadi Dervish (Sufi), was arrested in February 2018
during the protests in Tehran. He was tortured, had his teeth, nose and ribs
broken; needed 17 stitches on his head, lost his vision and consciousness, and
was forced to sign a false "confession" which was later used to sentence him to
death.
Amnesty International had called on the international community to "Do
everything in their power to stop the execution."
Mr. Salas had repeatedly announced that he had been forced under torture to
accept charges which he was not involved in. According to witnesses who were
not allowed to testify to the court, Salas had been arrested and beaten up
hours before the incident for which he was later accused of.
Friends of a Free Iran in the European Parliament which enjoys the support of
many MEPs from all political groups, had campaigned to stop the execution of Mr
Salas.
We call on the EU High Representative Federica Mogherini and the European
Parliament President Antonio Tajani to immediately condemn this brutal act of
barbarity that has been carried out by the Iranian regime.
In recent weeks, while the EU officials seem to have been only focused on the
Iranian nuclear deal, the Iranian regime has been persecuting dissidents and
civil society activists, handing them harsh sentences.
We keep insisting that any advancements of EU's relations with Iran must be
conditional to a clear improvement of human rights, women's rights and a halt
to the executions.
Gerard Deprez, MEP----Chair, Friends of a Free Iran in European Parliament
Friends of a Free Iran (FoFI) is an informal group in the European Parliament
which was formed in 2003 and enjoys the active support of many MEPs from
various political groups
(source: ncr-iran.org)
*******************
UN Rights Experts: Iran Must Halt Execution of Ramin Hossein Panahi
UN human rights experts have made a fresh call to Iran to annul the death
sentence imposed on Iranian Kurd Ramin Hossein Panahi, amid reports that he
will be executed after the end of the holy month of Ramadan.
The execution of Mr. Panahi was previously set for 3 May, but was postponed. It
is understood that a request for a judicial review was rejected by the Iranian
Supreme Court in late May, and the sentence against him was then referred to
the office responsible for carrying it out.
"The Iranian authorities must now halt the execution of Mr. Panahi and annul
the death sentence against him," the experts said.
It follows a similar appeal last month by the Special Rapporteur on
extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, Agnes Callamard, who cited
concerns that Mr. Panahi had not been given a fair trial, and that he had been
mistreated and tortured in detention.
"While acknowledging the postponement of the sentence in May, we regret that
Iran seems intent on executing Mr. Panahi, disregarding previous calls to annul
the death sentence, and ensure he is given a fair trial," Ms Callamard said.
The UN experts said there were many legal concerns about the handling of the
case, including reports that Mr. Panahi had been tortured, denied access to a
lawyer or medical care, and that he had been held incommunicado.
The experts also stressed their concern that the charges against Mr. Panahi did
not meet international standards, which specify that the death penalty must be
limited to cases of intentional killing.
Mr. Panahi was arrested in June last year for alleged membership of the Kurdish
nationalist group Komala. He was convicted of taking up arms against the State,
and sentenced to death by a Revolutionary Court in January 2018.
(source: Iran Human Rights)
**********************
Sufi prisoner Mohammad Salas Buried After Sudden Execution Without Family's
Permission; Lawyer: Burial Attended by "200 Anti-Riot Agents"
Iranian authorities buried the body of Mohammad Salas after he was executed on
June 18, 2018, without his family's permission at a burial presided by security
agents, the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) has learned.
"They denied us our last visit... They executed our father... Then they called
us and said he had been buried somewhere... My father was tortured... His head
was covered with stitches... When he was brought to court they had put makeup
on him like actors to hide the stitches," Salas' son Alireza Azami tweeted.
Hanged at dawn in Rajaee Shahr Prison in Karaj, west of Tehran, Salas, 51, was
buried in Darolsalam Cemetery in his hometown of Boroujerd, Lorestan Province,
in the presence of "200 anti-riot agents," his lawyer Zeynab Taheri tweeted.
"Despite his family's formal request for it to be transferred to the medical
examiner, Mohammad Salas' body was buried by the security forces in Boroujerd
without his relatives' permission," the defense attorney wrote. "If you did not
commit any atrocities or torture him, what were you afraid of?"
Salas was arrested on February 19, 2018, in Tehran during a violent clash
between security forces and followers of the Sufi Gonabadi Order in Iran known
as the Gonabadi dervishes.
He was charged and convicted of killing three policemen by allegedly driving a
bus over them. In the weeks before his execution, he accused his interrogators
of forcing him to confess under torture.
"I am innocent. There were 2 buses. I was not the driver of the bus that killed
those people. I am not a killer. I cannot even kill an ant. My bus was not
damaged and did not have any bullet marks. The police have fabricated all of
this. I was not behind the wheel of the bus that killed those people. That was
another bus," said Salas in an audio file released by his lawyer on May 22.
Salas' swift execution occurred 3 months after the Iranian authorities arrested
dozens of Sufi protesters in Tehran who were demanding the release of a
detained faith member who was being held in a local police station at the time.
Dervish Mohammad Raji died in police custody in Tehran sometime between
February 20 and March 4 after being detained at those protests.
The Gonabadi dervishes believe in a different interpretation of Islam than that
of Iran's ruling Muslim Shia establishment. The Islamic Republic views any
alternative belief system, especially those seeking converts, as a threat to
the prevailing Shia establishment and has imprisoned members of the Sufi order
as part of an ongoing persecution campaign.
Iranians Speak Out
Iranians took to social media to condemn Salas' execution in the face of
glaring irregularities in his case.
Former political prisoner and prominent reformist politician Mostafa Tajzadeh
tweeted, "The judiciary's unfathomable actions are causing tensions: Filtering
Telegram, executing Mohammad Salas without eliminating uncertainties, issuing
heavy sentences against students who took part in the December 2017 protests,
keeping Mohammad Ali Taheri in prison and detaining Nasrin Sotoudeh without
reason. Why is the [reformist] Omid faction [in Parliament] silent?"
"The IRIB [Iranian state-run TV] aired a confession from Salas the day he was
arrested but many people didn't believe it. He was put on trial and repeatedly
said his confessions were forced. Many Sufis said he was already in detention
when the accident happened. With all these ambiguities, why the hurry to
execute him?" tweeted journalist Farnaz Ghazizadeh.
Salas' lawyer Zeynab Taheri tweeted, "You are witnessing the crushing of
people's rights. The world is a witness, I will certainly follow up on this
matter with international organizations."
(source: Iran Human Rights)
*************************
Crowd in Erbil asks UN to pressure Iran to halt Kurd's execution
Protesters from Iranian Kurdistan (Rojhilat) and the Kurdistan Region gathered
on Tuesday in front of the United Nations (UN) office in Erbil, asking the
international community to use its influence to stop the execution of a
condemned Kurdish prisoner in Iran.
Some held up photographs of Ramin Hossein Panahi, the Kurdish prisoner who has
been jailed in Iran for months and has been reported to have spent a large
percentage of his detention in solitary confinement.
Panahi was sentenced to death in January by an Iranian court in Sanandaj (Sina)
for "taking up arms against the state." His conviction was based on claims that
he is a member of the armed Kurdish opposition group Komala, but no evidence
was presented that would link him to crimes he was charged with, which included
murder.
In April, Iran's Supreme Court approved the sentence.
"We demand the cancellation of the death sentence for Ramin Hossein Panahi who,
unfortunately, has been sentenced unjustly by a so-called court in Iran," a
demonstrator said, reading a prepared statement to reporters in front of the UN
compound.
The protestors urged the international organization to increase efforts to
pressure Tehran into overturning the verdict, warning that the sentence could
be implemented at any time and on any date and claiming that all necessary
preparations had been made to carry out the execution.
In late April, a UN statement read, "Executing Mr. Panahi, following his
torture, and unfair trial and on the basis of charges that do not meet
international standards for the use of death penalty, would be unconscionable.
We urge the Government of Iran to annul the death sentence."
Previously, international human rights organizations have voiced grave concerns
about Panahi's death sentence and urged Iranian authorities to overturn the
execution.
The sentence came after 'a grossly unfair trial and amid serious torture
allegations,' said Philip Luther, Amnesty International's Research and Advocacy
Director for the Middle East and North Africa.
"Ramin Hossein Panahi's case has been a breathtaking miscarriage of justice
from start to finish. After appearing at his trial reportedly bearing torture
marks on his body he was convicted in less than an hour," Luther added.
He continued, "During the investigation period, he was denied access to both
his lawyer and his family, as well as to any details of the evidence against
him. In a complete mockery of the judicial process, intelligence officials also
repeatedly pressured him to make a televised 'confession' in exchange for the
quashing of his death sentence."
"His refusal to submit to this pressure has seen him languishing in solitary
confinement."
In recent years, Iran has proven to be one of the leading nations in carrying
out the death penalty against its citizens. Of the 993 people executed globally
in 2017, 507 of them were in Iran, according to Amnesty.
"We urge the Iranian authorities not to compound this shocking catalogue of
human rights violations by proceeding with what is the ultimate and
irreversible denial of human rights," Luther previously stated.
"Ramin Hossein Panahi's death sentence must be quashed now before it's too
late."
(source: kurdistan24.net)
THAILAND----execution
Killer put to death
A 26-year-old convicted killer was executed by lethal injection on Monday, the
7th person to be put to death since the method was introduced and the 1st since
2009, Corrections Department chief Pol Col Naras Savestanan said.
Theerasak Longji, 26, was convicted of the brutal killing of a 17-year-old boy
in Trang.
He stabbed his victim 24 times in a frenzied attack on July 17, 2012, before
making off with his mobile phone and money.
Theerasak was convicted of the crime and his conviction was upheld by the
Appeal Court and the Supreme Court.
The death sentence was carried out in line with regulations and the Criminal
Code, Pol Col Naras said.
Theerasak was the 7th convict to be executed by lethal injection since it was
introduced in 2003, replacing execution by firing squad.
Pol Col Naras said 326 convicts have now been put to death since modern-day
executions were introduced in 1935.
A total of 319 were executed by firing squad by the time it was officially
abolished on Dec 11, 2003.
The 1st convict to receive a lethal injection came the next day.
Theerasak's execution was the 1st death sentence to be carried out in Thailand
since August, 2009, when 2 drug traffickers were executed simultaneously.
(source: Bangkok Post)
*************
Officials Silent on Thailand's 1st Execution in 9 Years
Death penalty opponents were caught by surprise by Thailand's 1st execution in
9 years Monday night while officials are offering no explanation.
After 26-year-old Teerasak Longji was executed at Bangkok's Bang Kwang Central
Prison by lethal injection for aggravated murder, the leading group calling for
abolition of capital punishment said Tuesday it deplored the decision and had
no idea why the unexpected execution occurred now.
"We are not sure," Amnesty International Thailand Director Piyanut Kotsan said
Tuesday morning when asked about the timing.
Piyanut said Amnesty was not in the loop despite years of discussions with the
Justice Ministry. She said her understanding was that Thailand has committed to
becoming an abolitionist state as reflected in its master plan for human
rights.
The last execution occurred in 2009 when 2 men were put to death for
drug-related crimes. This past October, the head of the government's human
rights agency signaled the death penalty, which had been in de facto moratorium
since 2009, would eventually be abolished.
"I can't say when it will end but in practice it will soon be 10 years since no
execution has taken place," Pitikan Sitthidej said in October. "We don't know
when the death penalty will be abolished."
Amnesty Thai director Piyanut said that standard practice for the last resort
of clemency has been to obtain a royal pardon commuting death to life in
prison. She said it's unclear whether a royal pardon had been sought by
Teerasak, who 6 years ago stabbed a 17-year-old high school student 24 times to
steal his smartphone and wallet in Trang province.
Corrections Department chief Narat Savettan declined to comment Tuesday on the
circumstances.
"I cannot give any comment about this," he said, adding that the department
would not issue any further statement on the matter.
A statement from Narat released Monday shed now light on why an execution had
taken place after 9 years. The last paragraph of the statement stated hope the
execution would serve as deterrence.
"It is hoped that this execution will give pause to those thinking of
committing heinous crimes or violating the law to consider the penalty," it
read.
The statement also pointed out that since the introduction of modern execution
in 1935, 325 executions have taken place.
Someone who answered the phone at Bang Kwang Prison said its director, Sophon
Yimpreecha was out for a meeting and could not be immediately reached.
Amnesty Thailand issued a statement Monday saying execution is deplorable and
will not reduce crime.
"This is a deplorable violation of the right to life. Thailand is shockingly
reneging on its own commitment to move towards abolition of the death penalty
and the protection of the right to life, and is also putting itself out of step
with the current global shift away from capital punishment," wrote Katherine
Gerson, an Amnesty campaigner in Thailand.
According to Amnesty Thailand, 510 people were on death row as of the end of
2017, 94 of which were women. The number of those who have exhausted all final
appeals is 193.
Gerson wrote that there is no evidence that the death penalty has any unique
deterrent effect, "so the Thai authorities' hopes that this move will reduce
crime is deeply misguided."
Kingsley Abbot, senior legal advisor for the Geneva-based International
Commission of Jurists, tweeted on Monday that execution is never justifiable
and "flies in the face of Thailand's repeated commitments on the international
to work towards abolition."
Amnesty announced it will hold a demonstration outside Bang Kwang at 2pm this
afternoon.
(source: khaosodenglish.com)
******************
Country's 1st execution since 2009 a deplorable move
Responding to the news that Thailand executed a 26-year-old man for aggravated
murder on 18 June, in the country's 1st execution since August 2009, Katherine
Gerson, Amnesty International's Thailand Campaigner, said:
"This is a deplorable violation of the right to life. Thailand is reneging on
its own commitment to move towards the abolition of the death penalty, and is
putting itself out of step with the current global shift away from capital
punishment.
"There is no evidence that the death penalty has any unique deterrent effect,
so the Thai authorities' hope that this move will reduce crime is deeply
misguided. The death penalty is the ultimate cruel, inhuman and degrading
punishment and provides no quick-fixes to problems the authorities want to
confront.
"After almost 10 years without an execution, this represents a major setback in
the country's journey towards abolition. The Thai government must immediately
halt any plans to carry out further executions and establish a moratorium on
the implementation of the death penalty."
Background
This is the 1st execution in Thailand since 2 men were executed by lethal
injection in August 2009, which followed a period of no executions since 2003.
Figures provided by the Ministry of Justice in March 2018 state that 510
people, including 94 women, were on death row of whom 193 had exhausted all
final appeals. More than 1/2 are believed to have been sentenced for
drug-related offences.
While the imposition of the mandatory death penalty is prohibited under
international law, the death penalty in Thailand remains mandatory for a number
of offences, including aggravated murder. Many of the offences for which the
death penalty may be applied do not meet the threshold of the "most serious
crimes" to which the use of the death penalty must be restricted under
international law in countries where it has not yet been abolished.
As of today, 106 countries have abolished the death penalty for all crimes and
142 in total are abolitionist in law or practice.
(source: Amnesty International)
MYANMAR:
Myanmar parliament votes down motion on death penalty for rape of minors
Myanmar's House of Representatives (Lower House) has voted down a motion on
death penalty for rape of minors, the official Global New Light of Myanmar
reported Tuesday. The motion, tabled by a parliament member, called on the
government to enact an effective special law to prevent the rape of minors and
to include the death penalty in the law.
Noting that Myanmar is a member country of the United Nations and had pledged
to uphold human rights and basic freedom, lawmaker Daw Myint Myint Soe said in
a debate in the House Monday that Myanmar had also unconditionally accepted the
fact that no crime should have the death penalty as agreed by many member
countries of the UN and furthermore there is no evidence to show that the death
penalty deters or reduces crime.
She pointed out that the biggest weakness of the death penalty is that there is
absolutely no chance for the person accused of the crime to take a legal
recourse.
"Death penalty is contrary to a democratic system, establishment of peace and
the rule of law which our country is undertaking as preliminary step," she
added.
Other MPs said taking a life is not related directly to reducing or eliminating
this crime, urging to adopt other methods so that people in the society live
according to ethics.
A government official recalled that there is a death penalty in law in Myanmar
but it is no longer imposed.
Meanwhile, the government is drawing up a bill for a special law on children's
rights and a bill for a law on preventing violence against women which are
being submitted for consideration.
The official concluded that these 2 bills are what the motion is proposing,
saying that if the MPs work on these 2 bills, appropriate action would have
been taken.
The House took the decision on the motion through voting with 141 in favor and
227 against. The motion was announced to be kept on record.
(source: xinhuanet.com)
ISRAEL:
Former minister could potentially face death penalty for spying for
Iran----Justice Ministry official says capital punishment an option in Gonen
Segev's case, but would be an 'unprecedented penalty' for espionage
Former minister Gonen Segev - found guilty of drug smuggling in 2006 - has for
years been a source of ridicule, his name usually only brought up in public
discourse as a comparison with other loud-mouthed rule-breaking lawmakers.
But charges announced Monday alleging that he engaged in espionage against
Israel for arch-foe Iran could see him facing much stiffer penalties than the 3
years he served in prison a decade ago.
If Segev is found guilty of handing information to Iran - as alleged in an
indictment revealed by the Shin Bet security agency Monday - he could face
either the death penalty or up to life imprisonment, legal sources told The
Times of Israel following the bombshell announcement.
Segev, who served as infrastructure and energy minister between 1995-1996,
provided Tehran with information about locations of security centers and
Israel's energy industry, the Shin Bet said. As somebody who sat in government
meetings and headed ministries dealing with energy and national infrastructure,
Segev would have had access to sensitive material during his time as a
politician, though it is unclear how damaging the information would have been
20 years later.
The ex-minister is also accused of making contact with Israeli figures in
security, defense and diplomacy, in order to mine them for information to send
to Iran. According to the Shin Bet, he tried to make direct connections between
his Israeli contacts and Iranian handlers, presenting the spies as
businesspeople.
He is also said to have met with his Iranian handlers in hotels and safe houses
around the world and used a special encrypted device to send them messages in
secret. He even allegedly traveled to Iran twice in order to divulge security
secrets.
After having been extradited to Israel from Equatorial Guinea last month, he
was indicted in a Jerusalem court on charges of assisting the enemy in wartime,
spying, and a number of other related crimes.
While Segev was sentenced to a relatively short 5 year prison sentence for his
drug smuggling conviction (which was cut by 1/3 for good behavior), the Israeli
legal system is unlikely to treat his latest apparent crimes nearly as lightly.
"Even the death penalty is an option," said Michael Sfard, an Israeli lawyer
and political activist specializing in international human rights law and the
laws of war.
"Espionage is in its own category according to Israeli law, the most serious
punishment is available," added Sfard, who co-authored the biography of the
Soviet spy Marcus Klingberg, perhaps the most damaging spy in Israel's history,
with Klingberg himself.
From 1957, Klingberg, deputy director of the top-secret Israel Institute for
Biological Research at Ness Ziona, south of Tel Aviv, and a professor of
epidemiology at Tel Aviv University, passed information about Israel's chemical
and biological activities to the Soviet Union.
Charged with spying for the KGB for 3 decades, Klingberg served 20 years in
prison, the first 10 in solitary confinement.
Segev could end up with a similar sentence, or worse.
"He's facing a life sentence or death penalty for the crime of aiding an enemy
in a time of a war, and 15 years to life sentence for espionage," said Nitsana
Darshan-Leitner, president of Shurat HaDin - Israel Law Center, a Tel
Aviv-based non-governmental organization whose aim is to put terror
organizations out of business.
"Giving information is 15 years, giving confidential information is life," she
added.
Only 1 person has ever been put to death after a death sentence by a standing
Israeli court: Nazi officer Adolf Eichmann, one of the architects of the
Holocaust. (Eichmann was convicted on 15 criminal charges, including crimes
against humanity, war crimes, and crimes against the Jewish people, and was
sentenced to death on June 1, 1962.) In 1948, the country put to death Meir
Tobiansky for treason, after a field court martial, the first and only
execution of an Israeli.
(John Demjanjuk was convicted of war crimes and crimes against humanity, and
sentenced to death in 1988. But 5 years later Israel's Supreme Court
unanimously ruled Demjanjuk was not death camp guard "Ivan the Terrible," and
overturned the 1988 verdict.)
However, the death penalty formally exists in Israeli law. It is technically
allowed in cases of high treason, as well as in certain circumstances under the
military law that applies within the IDF and in the West Bank.
A Justice Ministry official, speaking with the The Times of Israel, confirmed
that the death penalty is an option for prosecutors to pursue in Segev's case,
but admitted it would be an "unprecedented penalty" for espionage.
Segev, who served as a minister between January 1995 and June 1996, seems to be
the highest-ranking Israeli official ever charged with being a spy. But he
joins a long list of senior officials, including MKs and top army brass, who
have been charged with treason through the decades.
Segev has reportedly admitted to Shin Bet investigators that he was in contact
with Iranian intelligence officials, but claimed his alleged espionage on
behalf of the Islamic Republic was actually an effort to help Israel. The Shin
Bet was reported not to believe him.
During his interrogation, Segev reportedly told investigators that he had no
ideological or financial motive in helping Iran, and that he did not hand over
any classified information.
Segev's lawyers said in a statement to the press that the full charge sheet
painted a "different picture" from that which can be seen from only the parts
cleared for publication.
(source: Times of Israel)
_______________________________________________
A service courtesy of Washburn University School of Law www.washburnlaw.edu
DeathPenalty mailing list
DeathPenalty@lists.washlaw.edu
http://lists.washlaw.edu/mailman/listinfo/deathpenalty
Unsubscribe: http://lists.washlaw.edu/mailman/options/deathpenalty
