Iran publicly hanged on Tuesday a man convicted of murdering a female fellow student in the capital Tehran, the state television website reported.The 25-year-old, identified only by his first name Kousha, had confessed to stabbing the woman to death in broad daylight after she spurned him in early July, the report said.Kousha was sent to the gallows near the scene of the crime, a bridge in northwest Tehran, it added.The latest hanging brings to 193 the number of executions reported in Iran so far this year, according to an AFP tally based on media and official reports.
Iranian media reported 179 hangings last year but international human rights groups say the actual number was much higher, ranking the Islamic republic second only to China in the number of people it executed in 2010.Tehran says the death penalty is essential to maintain law and order, and that it is applied only after exhaustive judicial proceedings.Murder, rape, armed robbery, drug trafficking and adultery are among the crimes punishable by death in Iran. – Yahoonews
