Iran hangs four murderers in public

Iran hanged four murderers in public in the southern city of Dashtestan, the latest in a growing number of executions in the Islamic republic, a press report said yesterday.
The four, who included an Afghan national, were hanged at 6.30 am (0200 GMT) on Thursday in a square in the city after they were convicted of murdering several people in the southern province of Bushehr, reformist daily Kargozaran reported without providing further details.
The latest hangings bring to at least 121 the number of executions carried out in Iran so far this year, according to an AFP count.
Amnesty International reported that in 2007 Iran applied the death penalty more often than any other country apart from China, executing 317 people during the year.
Capital offences in the Islamic republic include murder, rape, armed robbery, drug trafficking and adultery.
Human rights groups have accused Iran of making excessive use of the death penalty but Tehran insists it is an effective deterrent that is carried out only after an exhaustive judicial process.