GENEVA / IRAQ EXECUTIONS

The UN human rights office (OHCHR) expressed its shock at the massive execution of 38 men at a prison in southern Iraqi city of Nassiriya on Thursday. UNTV CH

• Categories: News & Features / News Stories / Unifeed
• Video Length: 00:02:35
• Production Date: 15 December 2017
• Asset Language: English
• Corporate Name: OFFICE OF THE UNITED NATIONS HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS - OHCHR
• Subject Topical: HUMAN RIGHTS
• Geographic Subject: IRAQ
• MAMS Id: 2060786
• Parent Id: 2060786
• Alternate Title: unifeed171215g

Description

STORY: GENEVA / IRAQ EXECUTIONS
TRT: 02:35
SOURCE: UNTV CH
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS

DATELINE: 15 DECEMBER 2017, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND

Shotlist

15 DECEMBER 2017, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND

1. Wide shot, Palais des Nations exterior
2. Wide shot, press briefing room
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Liz Throssell, Spokesperson, Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR):
“These 38 prisoners had been convicted for terrorism-related crimes. Given the flaws of the Iraqi justice system, it also appears extremely doubtful that strict due process and fair trial guarantees were followed in these 38 cases. This raises the prospect of irreversible miscarriages of justice and violations of the right to life.”
4. Close up, journalist writing
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Liz Throssell, Spokesperson, Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR):
“So far this year, we have learned of 106 executions in Iraq, including the mass hanging of 42 prisoners in a single day in September.”
6. Close up, journalist
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Liz Throssell, Spokesperson, Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR):
“Our office in Iraq has asked the Ministry of Justice repeatedly for information, but since 2015 they have not provided that kind of information. So, we don’t have any concrete figures on how many may be on death row, we have spoken previously of some 1,200, but I have to say given that we haven’t had information, I can’t even begin to confirm that one way or the other.”
8. Med shot, journalists
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Liz Throssell, Spokesperson, Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR):
“Generally, under international human rights law, the death penalty may only be imposed if at all for the most serious crimes, and UN human rights experts have consistently interpreted that has been restricted to murder, and other forms of intentional killing. We don’t know specifically what these men were convicted of, but the High Commissioner, as previously said, that while we appreciate the members of terrorists groups found guilty of serious crimes should be held fully to account, the use of anti-terrorism legislation to impose the death penalty for a wide range of acts does not appear to meet the strict threshold apply to the imposition of the death penalty.”
10. Wide shot, journalists
11. SOUNDBITE (English) Liz Throssell, Spokesperson, Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR):
“What happened in September, there were 42 prisoners killed, executed in a single day in September, it was at the same prison in Nassiriya. And as I say we have a tally about 106 executions this year. I can’t say how those were divided up, whether it was a single execution in many cases. But I think the pattern seems to be that they are often mass executions, so it is multiple prisoners being executed at the same time.”
12. Various shots, journalists

Storyline

The UN human rights office (OHCHR) expressed its shock at the massive execution of 38 men at a prison in southern Iraqi city of Nassiriya on Thursday.

Speaking to reporters in Geneva today (15 Dec), OHCHR spokesperson Liz Throssell said the had been convicted for terrorism-related crimes. She added that given the “flaws of the Iraqi justice system, it appears extremely doubtful” that strict due process and fair trial guarantees were followed in the cases which “raises the prospect of irreversible miscarriages of justice and violations of the right to life.”

Throssel added that despite repeated requests to the Iraqi Ministry of Justice, OHCHR has not been provided with figures on how many may be on death row since 2015. She said her Office learned of 106 executions in Iraq this year, “including the mass hanging of 42 prisoners in a single day in September.” She noted that the pattern seems to be that executions are often done in mass.

The UN Human Rights Office urged again the Iraqi authorities to halt all executions and establish an immediate moratorium on the use of the death penalty and a review of the criminal justice system.

Throssel said, under international law, “the death penalty may only be imposed if at all for the most serious crimes.” She added, “we don’t know specifically what these men were convicted of, but the High Commissioner, as previously said, that while we appreciate the members of terrorists groups found guilty of serious crimes should be held fully to account, the use of anti-terrorism legislation to impose the death penalty for a wide range of acts does not appear to meet the strict threshold apply to the imposition of the death penalty.”