China was the world’s top executioner last year, while the United States put to death fewer people than it has in more than two decades, the human rights group Amnesty International said on Tuesday.
More than 90 percent of the world’s executions took place in five countries – China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Pakistan.
More than 3,000 people in 55 countries were condemned to death last year, marking a 56 percent surge from 2015.
You've reached your daily free article limit.
Subscribe and support our veteran writing staff to continue reading.
China was the world’s top executioner last year, while the United States put to death fewer people than it has in more than two decades, the human rights group Amnesty International said on Tuesday.
More than 90 percent of the world’s executions took place in five countries – China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Pakistan.
More than 3,000 people in 55 countries were condemned to death last year, marking a 56 percent surge from 2015.
China is believed to have executed “thousands” of people, more than the combined figure of at least 1,023 executions in 23 other countries last year, the rights group said.
“China now wants to assume a global leadership role. In respect to death penalty it is leading in the worst possible way,” said Amnesty International’s regional director for East Asia, Nicholas Bequelin.
“Nobody executes at that scale. Nobody executes with such secrecy. Nobody executes so quickly.”
China does not announce the number of people executed, guarding the data as a state secret.
The head of China’s Supreme People’s Court, Zhou Qiang, said in March China has made sure to impose capital punishment on “an extremely small number of criminals who committed extremely serious crimes,” according to the official Xinhua news agency.
Read the whole story from Reuters.
Promotion of Delta Force Trained General Who Led 82nd Airborne Division During Afghanistan Evacuation Held Up By Senate
US Navy to Sideline 17 Support Ships to Address Civilian Mariner Shortage
Inside Delta Force: America’s Most Elite Special Mission Unit
SOFREP Weekly-Former Navy SEAL Exposes Biden’s Risky Move: Missiles Into Russia
A Simple Software Upgrade Might Have Saved This F-18 Pilot’s Life
Join SOFREP for insider access and analysis.
TRY 14 DAYS FREEAlready a subscriber? Log In
COMMENTS
You must become a subscriber or login to view or post comments on this article.