Afghanistan: UN voices 'serious concerns' over execution of Taliban inmates
| Publisher | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |
| Publication Date | 10 May 2016 |
| Cite as | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Afghanistan: UN voices 'serious concerns' over execution of Taliban inmates, 10 May 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/576900dd15.html [accessed 6 June 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
May 10, 2016
By RFE/RL
The United Nations has voiced "serious concerns" over the recent execution of six Taliban prisoners on death row in Afghanistan.
"We regret the execution on Sunday, 8 May, of six people in Afghanistan, amid persisting serious concerns about compliance with fair trial standards, and reports about the widespread use of torture and ill-treatment as a means of extracting confessions," the spokesman for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Rupert Colville, said in a statement on May 10.
Colville urged Kabul to "refrain from approving death sentences and to immediately introduce an official moratorium on the use of the death penalty."
President Ashraf Ghani has toughened his stance against the militants after a major Taliban assault on Kabul that killed 64 people and wounded another 340 last month.
The president's office defended the executions, saying in a May 8 statement that they were conducted after a fair legal process and in accordance with the country's constitution and Islamic laws.
Link to original story on RFE/RL website
