Iraq executions almost doubled in 2019: Amnesty

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Executions in Iraq skyrocketed in 2019, according to a new report published Tuesday by rights group Amnesty International. 

Iraq, Iran, and Saudi Arabia combined were responsible for 81 percent of global executions last year, the report found. 

Executions in Iraq increased by 92 percent in 2019, the rights group said, with 100 confirmed death sentences carried out.

The spike in capital punishment is mainly attributed to the prosecution of suspected members of the Islamic State group (ISIS). 

Human rights organizations have expressed concern at Iraq’s handling of legal proceedings against ISIS militants, labelled as “seriously flawed” by the United Nations. 

“Throughout the year the mandatory death penalty was used under anti-terrorism laws for a wide range of acts that do not meet the ‘most serious crimes’ threshold required under international law,” Amnesty’s report said.

Both Iraqi and Kurdish authorities have been criticized for their prosecution of individuals linked to the group, including the use of sweeping anti-terror laws which “fail to capture the broad range of crimes” committed by ISIS militants.

No executions were recorded in the Kurdistan Region, although 45 people were sentenced to death and 13 commutations granted by judiciary officials.

Although the number of executions remains at a historic low for a second consecutive year, Iran is still the region’s number one executor – sentencing at least 251 people to death in 2019. 

Of this number, 15 women were killed – up from five the previous year. 

Tehran is also accused of executing four people who are alleged to have committed crimes while under the age of 18. This constitutes a violation of international law.

Most of those executed by the Islamic Republic were convicted of murder, followed by those convicted of drug offenses and rape. 

Death sentences were also carried out on the grounds of “vaguely worded offences, including insulting the Prophet, enmity against God, and spreading corruption on Earth.”

Iran is regularly accused of human rights abuses regarding its treatment and prosecution of prisoners, including dual nationals imprisoned on espionage charges.

Amnesty has called on Tehran to free prisoners in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has claimed more than 5,000 lives nationwide. 

While Iran has granted furloughs to approximately 100,000 prisoners in recent weeks, a large number of political prisoners remain behind bars and are at a high risk of contracting the virus, according to rights groups.