ITALY. PRODI DEFENDS CRITICISM OF IRANIAN EXECUTIONS

Premier Romano Prodi defended Italy’s opposition to the death penalty after Rome's criticism of Iran’s use of capital punishment escalated into a diplomatic fight.
An Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman called Rome's protests an interference in Tehran's internal affairs. However Prodi insisted "Italy has a right to express its opposition to these executions."
The Italian Foreign Ministry protested the public hanging of two men convicting of killing a prominent judge, and the12 criminals who were hanged last month for rape, kidnapping and drug trafficking. The ministry expressed "strong worry" over the recent executions and over two journalists from Iran's Kurdish minority sentenced to death last week.
"Iran is a country that abuses the death penalty and denies basic rights. It is a right and a duty to raise our voice," Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Gianni Vernetti told Corriere della Sera daily.