A United Nations human rights expert called on Afghanistan...

A United Nations human rights expert called on Afghanistan to suspend the death penalty and stop executions because the country's judicial system was not up to international standards, according to a report released by the UN. Asma Jahangir, the UN special rapporteur on extrajudiciary, summary and arbitrary executions warned in an advance version of her report that the problem was severe enough to raise "a risk of a reversal of the peace process, a relapse into renewed violence and fresh refugee outflows". Her report, compiled after a visit to Afghanistan in October 2002, outlined a climate of fear in the country, where reconciliation was impossible unless abuse under the Taliban regime was prosecuted. She also warned that impunity was widespread, and that a series of killings and summary executions had taken place since the fall of the Taliban. "Until the legal and judicial system in Afghanistan can guarantee compliance with United Nations safeguards and restrictions relating to the imposition of capital punishment, imposition of the death sentence should be suspended and a moratorium on executions should be implemented," the report added.