Iraqi authorities executed at least 21 individuals, including one woman, on Wednesday, with most convicted on “terrorism” charges, according to three security sources.
This marks the highest number of executions reported in a single day in years for Iraq, which has faced criticism for its judicial processes and mass capital punishment.
An Iraqi security official told AFP, “Twenty-one convicts including a woman were executed” on charges related to “terrorism” and connections to the Daesh militant group.
The woman was reportedly involved in a murder during anti-government protests in Baghdad in 2019.
Additionally, a young man accused of firing shots was killed, and his body was displayed hanging from a pole.
The executions took place at Al-Hut prison in Nassiriya, according to the same source, with all those executed being Iraqi nationals.
A medical source in Dhi Qar province confirmed that the forensic department had received the bodies from the prison authority.
The timing of the executions remains unclear, with reports suggesting they occurred on either Tuesday or Wednesday.
In recent years, Iraqi courts have issued hundreds of death and life sentences for “terrorism” convictions, often criticised by rights groups for their swift procedures.
In July, 10 “terror” convicts were executed in Nassiriya, leading to calls from rights organizations for a cessation of the death penalty.
Earlier in May, eight individuals were executed on similar charges, followed by another 11 later that month.
In late January, UN experts expressed “deep concern” about reports of mass executions in Iraq’s prison system.
They highlighted a significant execution event in Nassiriya prison, where “13 male Iraqi prisoners — previously sentenced to death — were executed on 25 December 2023,” marking the largest single-day execution total since November 2020.
Iraq’s Justice Minister Khaled Shuani dismissed the UN experts’ statements as lacking documented evidence, as reported by the official Iraqi News Agency.
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