Post by Anja Nieser on Sept 9, 2006 10:14:53 GMT -5
BAGHDAD, Sept 7 (Reuters) - Iraq said it executed 27 men in Baghdad on Wednesday after they were convicted of murder and rape.
The convicts came from a number of Iraq's 18 provinces, the government said in a brief statement issued late on Wednesday.
"They were executed after the criminals were convicted in Iraqi courts for carrying out acts of murder and rape," it said.
Iraqiya state television on Thursday showed brief film of five men in green overalls with black hoods covering their heads and their hands bound behind their backs. They shuffled in a line facing the camera in front of an outdoor wall.
Journalists at the station said the footage was provided by the Iraqi government after the executions. It was unclear, however, when it was taken or who the men were.
Traditionally, under an penal system dating to the time of British rule, Iraq executes convicts by hanging and officials said last year this was the case when executions resumed for the first time since the fall of Saddam Hussein.
The United Nations and European states have criticised the Iraqi government for re-introducing capital punishment. The United States has defended the U.S.-backed authorities' right to use the death penalty.
Some of the more than 1,200 people convicted of insurgent activity by the U.S.-sponsored Central Criminal Court of Iraq have been sentenced to death. Precise figures on convictions and executions were not immediately available.
AlertNet news is provided by REUTERS
The convicts came from a number of Iraq's 18 provinces, the government said in a brief statement issued late on Wednesday.
"They were executed after the criminals were convicted in Iraqi courts for carrying out acts of murder and rape," it said.
Iraqiya state television on Thursday showed brief film of five men in green overalls with black hoods covering their heads and their hands bound behind their backs. They shuffled in a line facing the camera in front of an outdoor wall.
Journalists at the station said the footage was provided by the Iraqi government after the executions. It was unclear, however, when it was taken or who the men were.
Traditionally, under an penal system dating to the time of British rule, Iraq executes convicts by hanging and officials said last year this was the case when executions resumed for the first time since the fall of Saddam Hussein.
The United Nations and European states have criticised the Iraqi government for re-introducing capital punishment. The United States has defended the U.S.-backed authorities' right to use the death penalty.
Some of the more than 1,200 people convicted of insurgent activity by the U.S.-sponsored Central Criminal Court of Iraq have been sentenced to death. Precise figures on convictions and executions were not immediately available.
AlertNet news is provided by REUTERS