300 on death row in Iran for drug smuggling

Iran has 300 convicted drug smugglers on death row, Tehran prosecutor Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi said in comments published on Tuesday, adding that, to his regret, few of them were major traffickers. "300 people have been sentenced to death in relation to drug smuggling," the English-language government-owned Iran Daily quoted the prosecutor as saying. "However, these people are not the major drug traffickers. We need to move towards the big smugglers." Jafari Dolatabadi did not specify whether all those he referred to had exhausted all avenues of appeal. Possession of more than 30 grammes (just over an ounce) of narcotics is punishable by death in Iran as are murder, rape, armed robbery and some cases of adultery. So far this year, Iran has executed 145 people, according to an AFP tally based on reports published by local media. Iranian media reported 179 hangings last year. But international human rights groups say the actual number was much higher, making the Islamic republic second only to China in the number of people it put to death. Iran says the death penalty is essential to maintain law and order, and that it is applied only after exhaustive judicial proceedings. Iran is a major transit route for drugs from neighbouring Afghanistan, which produces some 90% of the world's opium, according to UN figures. Iranian officials say that some 3,500 members of the security forces have been killed in clashes with traffickers over the past 30 years, mainly in areas bordering Afghanistan or Pakistan.