Chronological archive
February 2021
The 88 news items published by Hands Off Cain in February 2021, in chronological order.
IRAN - Four Political Prisoners executed in Sepidar Prison on February 28
Naser Khafajian, Ali Khasraji, Hossein Silawi and Jasem Heidary
- FEBRUARY 28, 2021United StatesDEATH PENALTY
USA - Juvenile Life Without Parole
1.465 people are serving JLWOP
FEBRUARY 27, 2021PakistanDEATH PENALTYPAKISTAN: HIGH COURT UPHOLDS DEATH SENTENCE OF MAN WHO MURDERED 16-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER
The Sindh High Court on 26 February 2021 dismissed the appeal of a man against his death sentence. He was convicted of murdering his 16-year-old daughter.
FEBRUARY 27, 2021PakistanDEATH PENALTYPAKISTAN: CHRISTIAN COUPLE ON DEATH ROW HAVE BLASPHEMY APPEAL DELAYED INDEFINITELY
A Pakistani high court on 24 February 2021 indefinitely delayed the appeal hearing of a Christian couple who have been on death row since 2014.
- FEBRUARY 27, 2021United StatesDEATH PENALTY
USA - In the United States, more than 200,000 people are serving life sentences
study by the Sentencing Project
FEBRUARY 26, 2021IranDEATH PENALTYIRAN - Ahmad A’araji executed on February 26 at Irak prison
For murder
- FEBRUARY 26, 2021IranDEATH PENALTY
IRAN - Hamed Mostafaei executed in Arak Prison on February 26
for drugs
FEBRUARY 26, 2021United StatesDEATH PENALTYUSA - Federal Bureau of Prisons Sanitized Execution Reports
Omitting Disturbing Details Observed by Media Witnesses
FEBRUARY 25, 2021NigeriaDEATH PENALTYNIGERIA: JIGAWA STATE GOVERNOR SIGNS LAW APPROVING DEATH SENTENCE FOR RAPISTS
The Governor of Jigawa State, Muhammad Badaru, on 24 February 2021 assented to a bill stipulating stiffer punishment for rapists.
- FEBRUARY 25, 2021AlabamaDEATH PENALTY
USA - Alabama. Alabama is changing lethal injection protocol
Will now allow spiritual advisors in the execution chamber
FEBRUARY 25, 2021IndiaDEATH PENALTYINDIA: HIGH COURT ACQUITS MAN FROM DEATH SENTENCE, ORDERS PROBE AGAINST INVESTIGATING TEAM
The Bombay High Court while acquitting a man from a death sentence for raping and killing a minor girl, on 25 February 2021 ordered a probe against the investigating team for misplacing a vital piece of evidence.
FEBRUARY 25, 2021IraqDEATH PENALTYIRAQ: WOMAN TO BE HANGED FOR KILLING HER 2 CHILDREN
An Iraqi court on 19 February 2021 sentenced a woman to death by hanging after convicting her of throwing her two children into a river in a case that triggered shockwaves in the country.
FEBRUARY 25, 2021OklahomaDEATH PENALTYUSA - Oklahoma. Supporters of Jones submitted more 6.2 million signatures (including HoC’s)
supporting his petition for clemency
FEBRUARY 24, 2021IndiaDEATH PENALTYINDIA: UP COURT AWARDS DEATH SENTENCE TO ACCUSED IN RAPE AND MURDER CASE OF MINOR GIRL
The Additional District Judge (ADJ) of Hardoi, in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, on 22 February 2021 awarded death sentence to an accused for rape and murder of a one-and-half year old minor girl.
FEBRUARY 24, 2021IranDEATH PENALTYIRAN - “Ehsan” Acquitted of Alcohol Consumption
He wes facing death penalty,
FEBRUARY 24, 2021United NationsDEATH PENALTYU.N. RIGHTS BOSS WELCOMES BIDEN STANCE AGAINST DEATH PENALTY
The U.N. human rights chief on 23 February 2021 welcomed a pledge by U.S. President Joe Biden to work towards abolishing the death penalty in the United States.
- FEBRUARY 23, 2021IranDEATH PENALTY
IRAN - Jafar Mansour-Beigi executed at Adelabad Prison on February 23
He was charged with murder
FEBRUARY 23, 2021LebanonDEATH PENALTYLEBANON: MILITARY COURT CHARGES 35 TRIPOLI PROTESTERS WITH TERRORISM
The Lebanese Military Court on 22 February 2021 charged 35 protesters from the northern city of Tripoli with terrorism and theft, which carries a maximum penalty of death, attorney Ayman Raad said in a statement.
FEBRUARY 23, 2021BangladeshDEATH PENALTYBANGLADESH: MAN SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR KILLING DISABLED WIFE, SON
A Kishoreganj court on 8 February 2021 awarded the death sentence to a man for killing his disabled wife and son. Additionally he was fined Tk 2 lakh.
- FEBRUARY 23, 2021IranDEATH PENALTY
IRAN - B. Ahmad hanged on February 23
for murder
FEBRUARY 22, 2021VirginiaDEATH PENALTYUSA - Virginia. The abolition of the death penalty is almost final.
Gov. Ralph Northam is expected to sign
FEBRUARY 22, 2021IndiaDEATH PENALTYINDIA: BIHAR MAN GETS DEATH PENALTY FOR RAPING, MURDERING MINOR GIRL
A court in Bihar’s Gopalganj district on 20 February 2021 sentenced a man to death for raping and murdering a nine-year-old girl in August last year.
FEBRUARY 22, 2021IranDEATH PENALTYIRAN - Behnam Mahjoubi, sentenced to 2 years, died from lack of medical treatment
Mahjoubi was a Gonabadi sufi dervish
FEBRUARY 22, 2021IndiaDEATH PENALTYINDIA: ‘PRESIDENT UNCLE, PLEASE FORGIVE MY MOTHER’, DEATH ROW CONVICT SHABNAM'S SON SEEKS MERCY
The son of a death row convict in Uttar Pradesh's Amroha on 18 February 2021 appealed to President Ram Nath Kovind to commute her death sentence.
FEBRUARY 21, 2021IranDEATH PENALTYIRAN - 73 year-old man facing death penalty for alcohol consumption
after being arrested for the fourth time
FEBRUARY 20, 2021ThailandDEATH PENALTYTHAILAND: DRUG BARON'S SONS GET DEATH
Two sons of convicted drug baron and former Kuomintang fighter Lao Ta Saenlee were sentenced to death on 17 February 2021 by the Criminal Court for drug trafficking and money laundering.
FEBRUARY 20, 2021AlgeriaDEATH PENALTYALGERIA: JIHADIST SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR FRENCH HIKER’S MURDER
An Algerian court on 18 February 2021 sentenced to death a jihadist for the kidnapping and beheading of French mountaineer Herve Gourdel six years ago after a high profile one-day trial.
- FEBRUARY 20, 2021IranDEATH PENALTY
IRAN - Mansour Ghazaq hanged on February 20
for murder
FEBRUARY 19, 2021IranDEATH PENALTYIRAN - Zahra Esmaili was already dead when executed
according to her lawyer
FEBRUARY 18, 2021BangladeshDEATH PENALTYBANGLADESH: DEATH PENALTY UPHELD FOR 10 MILITANTS
A Bangladeshi top court on 17 February 2021 upheld the death sentence of 10 militants in a two-decade-old case related to the attempted assassination of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
FEBRUARY 18, 2021United StatesDEATH PENALTYUSA - DPIC Adds Eleven Cases to Innocence List
185 death-row exoneration from 1973 to today
Show news 31–60 of 87
FEBRUARY 18, 2021IndiaDEATH PENALTYINDIA: MAN SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR SEXUALLY ASSAULTING, KILLING MENTALLY RETARDED MINOR BOY
The Mahila Court on 18 February 2021 awarded death penalty to a 34-year-old man hailing from Gujarat for sexually assaulting and murdering a mentally retarded 17-year-old minor boy.
- FEBRUARY 17, 2021IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: PATNA SCHOOL PRINCIPAL GETS DEATH PENALTY FOR RAPING CLASS 5 STUDENT
The principal and a teacher of a school in Patna on 15 February 2021 were awarded death sentence and imprisonment for life, respectively, by a court for the rape of a Class 5 student.
FEBRUARY 17, 2021BangladeshDEATH PENALTYBANGLADESH: SIX SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR KILLING FOUR OF A FAMILY IN KURIGRAM
Kurigram District and Sessions Judge Md Abdul Mannan on 16 February 2021 sentenced six people to death for killing four members of a family in 2014.
FEBRUARY 17, 2021IranDEATH PENALTYIRAN - 2 more men executed on February 17 at Rajai Shahr Prison
9 executions in one day at Rajai Shahr
- FEBRUARY 17, 2021IranDEATH PENALTY
IRAN - 1 woman and 6 men executed in Rajai Shahr Prison on February 17
Only the woman identified: Zahra Esmaili
FEBRUARY 17, 2021JordanDEATH PENALTYJORDAN: DEATH SENTENCE OVERTURNED FOR MAN WHO KILLED FIVE-YEAR-OLD NEPHEW
The Court of Cassation has overturned an October Criminal Court verdict, sentencing a man to death after convicting him of murdering his nephew in May 2019, the Jordan Times reported on 16 February 2021.
FEBRUARY 16, 2021NigeriaDEATH PENALTYNIGERIA: DISMISSED SARS OFFICER SENTENCED TO DEATH OVER EXTRA-JUDICIAL KILLING
A State High Court in Benin City, Edo Sate, on 12 February 2021, sentenced a police constable, Joseph Omotosho, to death for conspiring with four other constables, said to be at large, to kill a car dealer in 2015.
FEBRUARY 16, 2021Saudi ArabiaDEATH PENALTYSAUDI ARABIA: SAUDI NATIONAL HANDED DEATH PENALTY FOR MURDER OF BANGLADESHI WOMAN
A criminal court in Riyadh on 14 February 2021 handed a Saudi national the death penalty for the murder of a Bangladeshi domestic worker.
FEBRUARY 16, 2021BangladeshDEATH PENALTYBANGLADESH: COURT SENTENCES 5 TO DEATH FOR KILLING US BLOGGER AVIJIT ROY
A court in Bangladesh on 16 February 2021 sentenced five men to death and one to life in jail for hacking a secular blogger to death six years ago in Dhaka.
FEBRUARY 16, 2021IranDEATH PENALTYIRAN - Ali Dadfari-Mazandarani executed on February 16 in Boroujerd Prison
For drug crimes
- FEBRUARY 16, 2021MontanaDEATH PENALTY
USA - Montana. Bill to reinstate executions in Montana passes House vote
HB 244
FEBRUARY 15, 2021Myanmar (Burma)DEATH PENALTYMYANMAR: JUNTA PARDONS OVER 23,000 PRISONERS AS PROTESTS CONTINUE
Myanmar's new military-led State Administration Council on 12 February 2021 announced the remittances of more than 23,000 prisoners, both local and foreigners, as protests against the coup continued for a seventh consecutive day.
FEBRUARY 15, 2021SomaliaDEATH PENALTYSOMALILAND: NORWEGIAN CITIZEN SENTENCED TO DEATH COULD BE SHOT WITHIN A FEW DAYS
The Court of Appeal in Hargeisa on 14 February 2021 upheld the death sentence against the 54-year-old Norwegian citizen Saad Jirde Hayd in Somaliland.
FEBRUARY 15, 2021United StatesDEATH PENALTYUSA - Federal Executions Were Likely COVID Superspreader Events
Associated Press Finds
- FEBRUARY 15, 2021TürkiyeDEATH PENALTY
IRAN - Iran Denies Citizen Detained In Turkey Is A Consulate Employee
Involved in the murder of a dissident
FEBRUARY 14, 2021IranDEATH PENALTYIRAN - Saeed Ali-Mohammadi executed at Nour Prison on February 14
He was charged with murder
FEBRUARY 13, 2021Saudi ArabiaDEATH PENALTYSAUDI ARABIA: EGYPTIAN ALI ABU AL-QASIM’S DEATH SENTENCE REDUCED TO 25 YEARS IN PRISON
Saudi Arabia’s Tabuk Criminal Court sentenced on 11 February 2021 Egyptian engineer Ali Abul-Qasim to 25 years in prison after cancelling a death penalty over his conviction in a drug trafficking case.
FEBRUARY 13, 2021Sri LankaDEATH PENALTYSRI LANKA: STAY ORDER ON DEATH PENALTY EXTENDED
The Supreme Court on 11 February 2021 extended the stay order on the decision by former President Maithripala Sirisena to implement the death penalty on four drug convicts.
FEBRUARY 13, 2021IranDEATH PENALTYIRAN - Bahavar Tanazi executed at Meshgin Shahr Prison on February 13
Sentenced for murder
FEBRUARY 13, 2021IranDEATH PENALTYIRAN - Jamaluddin Brahui and Mohammad Barahui executed at Birjand prison on February 13
The two Baluchi prisoners were executed on drug related charges
FEBRUARY 13, 2021IranDEATH PENALTYIRAN - Mansour Ghazagh executed on February 13 at Birjand Prison
For drug crimes
- FEBRUARY 12, 2021IranDEATH PENALTY
IRAN - Another Iranian Diplomat Arrested for Terror
In Turkey, for murder of an Iranian dissident
FEBRUARY 11, 2021SudanDEATH PENALTYSUDAN: KHARTOUM AUTHORITIES HANG SOUTH SUDANESE WOMAN
A 39-year-old South Sudanese woman in Khartoum was hanged on 9 February 2021 after being sentenced to death for killing her little sister in Sudan three years ago.
FEBRUARY 11, 2021AlabamaDEATH PENALTYUSA - Alabama. Willie B. Smith won a reprieve from a scheduled lethal injection
the U.S. Supreme Court said the state could not proceed without his pastor in the death chamber
- FEBRUARY 11, 2021YemenDEATH PENALTY
YEMEN: HOUTHI-RUN COURT SENTENCES LAWMAKERS TO DEATH
A court in Yemen’s capital run by the Houthi rebel group on 9 February 2021 handed down death sentences in absentia to 11 parliamentarians over their support for the Yemeni government.
FEBRUARY 11, 2021BangladeshDEATH PENALTYBANGLADESH: EIGHT ISLAMISTS TO HANG OVER MURDER OF PUBLISHER
Eight Islamic extremists were on 10 February 2021 sentenced to death in Bangladesh for the murder of a publisher, as the Muslim-majority nation grapples with tensions between religious hardliners and secularists.
FEBRUARY 10, 2021IraqDEATH PENALTYIRAQ: FIVE ‘TERRORISM’ CONVICTS HANGED
Iraq on 9 February 2021 hanged five people convicted on “terrorism” charges in a notorious southern prison, security sources said, despite an international outcry in recent months over the country’s execution record.
- FEBRUARY 10, 2021NigeriaDEATH PENALTY
NIGERIA: 40-YEAR-OLD MAN SENTENCED TO DEATH OVER ARMED ROBBERY
Akwa Ibom State High Court on 8 February 2021 sentenced a 40-year-old man, Kufre Christopher Archibong, to death by hanging for armed robbery.
FEBRUARY 10, 2021PakistanDEATH PENALTYPAKISTAN: DEATH SENTENCE COMMUTED FOR TWO MENTALLY ILL CONVICTS
In a landmark ruling, Pakistan's top court on 10 February 2021 commuted the death sentences of two mentally ill prisoners who have spent decades on death row, the first such ruling in this conservative Muslim-majority nation.
FEBRUARY 9, 2021ThailandDEATH PENALTYTHAILAND: ISRAELI ON DEATH ROW TO BE TRANSFERRED TO ISRAEL
After being sentenced to death and managing to survive in one of the harshest prisons in Thailand — and after a long legal battle in the Israeli Supreme Court led by Adv. Nechama Tzivin — Israeli citizen Yigal Makhlouf will soon be transferred to Israel a
Show news 61–87 of 87
FEBRUARY 9, 2021BotswanaDEATH PENALTYBOTSWANA: TWO MEN HANGED FOR MURDER
Botswana on 8 February 2021 hanged two men convicted of murder.
- FEBRUARY 9, 2021BangladeshDEATH PENALTY
BANGLADESH: 4 SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR ARMY SOLDIER MURDER
A Cumilla court on 8 February 2021 sentenced four people to death and another to ten years jail in a case filed over murder of an army soldier in 2016.
FEBRUARY 9, 2021IranDEATH PENALTYIRAN - Mehrdad Taleshi, 21, Killed in Police Custody
arrested for seven grams of marijuana
FEBRUARY 9, 2021TexasDEATH PENALTYUSA - Texas. Death Sentence for Melissa Lucio Reinstated
by Federal Appeals Court
FEBRUARY 9, 2021United StatesDEATH PENALTYUSA - Pennsylvania. Christopher Williams Released From Prison After Being Cleared of Another Murder
In 1989 he was charged with 6 murders, none of which he committed
FEBRUARY 8, 2021Saudi ArabiaDEATH PENALTYSAUDI ARABIA: THREE YOUTHS GET PRISON SENTENCE INSTEAD OF DEATH
Three young Saudi men who faced death sentences for acts they were accused of committing as minors have been handed a 10-year prison sentence instead, the Saudi Human Rights Commission said on 7 February 2021.
- FEBRUARY 8, 2021PakistanDEATH PENALTY
PAKISTAN: SUPREME COURT UPHOLDS DEATH SENTENCE OF MAN WHO RAPED, MURDERED 8-YEAR-OLD GIRL
Pakistan’s top court on 5 February 2021 dismissed an appeal filed by a man convicted to death for the rape and murder of an 8-year old girl in Punjab’s southern district Vehari.
FEBRUARY 8, 2021IranDEATH PENALTYIRAN - Saeed Naderi and an unknows female executed in Ardabil Prison on February 8
The woman, 23, may have been a juvenile offender
FEBRUARY 8, 2021TexasDEATH PENALTYUSA - Texas. Harris County DA Seeks to Vacate Sentence for Raymond Riles
Nation’s Longest-Serving Death-Row Prisoner
FEBRUARY 6, 2021ChinaDEATH PENALTYCHINA: SERIAL KILLER AND RAPIST EXECUTED IN HEBEI
High-profile serial killer Wang Shujin, 53, was executed in Hebei province on 2 February 2021 after his death sentence for rape and intentional killing was approved by the Supreme People's Court.
FEBRUARY 6, 2021DEATH BY PUNISHMENTELISABETTA ZAMPARUTTI HAS BEEN ELECTED TO THE CPT FOR A SECOND TERM
The Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe elected me to the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) as a member on behalf of Italy.
- FEBRUARY 5, 2021VirginiaDEATH PENALTY
USA - Virginia. After Senate, House voted to abolish death penalty
Governor is expected to sign
FEBRUARY 4, 2021ChinaDEATH PENALTYCHINA: MAN SENTENCED TO DEATH WITH TWO-YEAR REPRIEVE FOR BEIJING HOSPITAL KNIFE ATTACK
A Beijing court on 2 February 2021 handed a death sentence with a two-year reprieve to a man who injured four people with a knife at a hospital in the city.
FEBRUARY 4, 2021NigeriaDEATH PENALTYNIGERIA: MAN SENTENCED TO DEATH BY HANGING FOR ARMED ROBBERY
An Abeokuta High Court on 3 February 2021 sentenced a 33-year-old man, Ibrahim Toyin, to death by hanging for robbing a woman of her handbag at gunpoint.
- FEBRUARY 4, 2021South CarolinaDEATH PENALTY
USA - South Carolina. State Supreme Court delays execution of Brad Sigmon
No lethal drugs
FEBRUARY 3, 2021BangladeshDEATH PENALTYBANGLADESH: TWO SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR RAPING, KILLING MINOR GIRL
A Shariatpur court on 3 February 2021 sentenced two people to death for killing a minor girl after rape at Sakhipur village under Bhedarganj upazila, three years back.
FEBRUARY 3, 2021ChinaDEATH PENALTYCHINA: MAN EXECUTED FOR ABDUCTING AND RAPING A 10-YEAR-OLD GIRL
The Qinzhou Intermediate People's Court in the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region on 2 February 2021 carried out the execution of Yang Guangyi, who raped a 10-year-old girl.
FEBRUARY 3, 2021PakistanDEATH PENALTYPAKISTAN: SUPREME COURT ORDERS MAN ACQUITTED IN PEARL MURDER OFF DEATH ROW
Pakistan’s Supreme Court on 2 February 2021 ordered the Pakistani-British man acquitted of the 2002 beheading of American journalist Daniel Pearl off death row and moved to a so-called government “safe house.”
- FEBRUARY 3, 2021VirginiaDEATH PENALTY
USA - Virginia. SB 1165 to abolish death penalty passes Senate
It is expected to easily pass the House
FEBRUARY 3, 2021IranDEATH PENALTYIRAN - Belgian Court sentenced iranian diplomat Assadollah Assadi to 20 years
for planning to bomb a meeting of the Iranian opposition National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI)
FEBRUARY 3, 2021United StatesDEATH PENALTYUSA - Nearly 1 Million Dollar for Each Federal Execution
financial records recently obtained by the ACLU
FEBRUARY 2, 2021BangladeshDEATH PENALTYBANGLADESH: HC CONFIRMS DEATH SENTENCES OF 8 CONVICTS IN 2 MURDER CASES
The High Court have recently confirmed the death penalty of eight convicts in Bangladesh in two separate murder cases in Keraniganj of Dhaka and Faridpur, The Daily Star reported on 1st February 2021.
FEBRUARY 2, 2021VietnamDEATH PENALTYVIETNAM: SIX PEOPLE SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR DRUG TRAFFICKING
A court in Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh city sentenced six members of a transnational gang to death on 29 January 2021 for trafficking 100 kg of drugs from Cambodia to Vietnam, VNExpress reported.
FEBRUARY 2, 2021IranDEATH PENALTYIRAN Jabbar Nemati executed in Adelabad Prison on February 2
for murder
FEBRUARY 1, 2021IranDEATH PENALTYIRAN - Mehran Narouie executed in Isfahan prison on February 1
No information about his charges
FEBRUARY 1, 2021NigeriaDEATH PENALTYNIGERIA: KEBBI STATE APPROVES DEATH SENTENCE FOR KIDNAPPERS
Kebbi State governor Abubakar Atiku Bagudu on 28 January 2021 signed a law that prescribes the death penalty for convicted kidnappers.
FEBRUARY 1, 2021AustraliaDEATH PENALTYAUSTRALIA WON’T EXTRADITE S’PORE-BORN MURDER SUSPECT IF DEATH PENALTY AWAITS HIM
A man born in Singapore wanted in relation to a murder case nearly four decades ago is in jail in Australia, but the country’s Attorney-General’s Department has said he cannot be extradited if he faces the death penalty.