A/HRC/27/26 the Covenant required that States that continued to apply the death penalty should impose that sentence only for the most serious crimes. 30. Several delegations expressed concern with regard to the imposition of the death penalty in violation of international human rights standards. In particular, they expressed concern with regard to: the application of the death penalty in an arbitrary manner and in secrecy; the mandatory nature of the death penalty in some States; the inhuman and degrading detention conditions of death row prisoners; the use of unregulated substances in the formulae of lethal injections; public executions; the increase in the number of executions in certain countries; the expansion of the range of categories of crime to which the death penalty could apply; the use of the death penalty against children, persons with disabilities and other vulnerable groups; the resumption of executions after decades of a de facto moratorium; and withdrawal from international safeguards aimed at preventing miscarriages of justice. Some delegations also highlighted the need to discuss the difficulties and other related issues regarding executions, including social and economic implications of such punishment. They urged States to acknowledge the negative impact on children of their parents being sentenced to death or executed. 31. Several delegations expressed concern that a number of countries continued to apply the death penalty at an alarming rate. For instance, it was noted that, since the beginning of 2014, 155 people, including several minors, had reportedly been executed in the Islamic Republic of Iran. However, only 84 of those executions had been officially confirmed. It was also noted that the Islamic Republic of Iran continued to apply the death penalty for crimes, including drug-related crimes and sexual offences, that did not meet the criteria of “most serious crimes”. In Iraq, 170 people had reportedly been executed in 2013, making the country one of the top three executors in the world. The majority of those executions had reportedly been carried out under the pretext of fighting terrorism, on the basis of the 2005 anti-terrorism law, which provided capital punishment for a multitude of unclear crimes. 32. Several delegations expressed concern that some retentionist States had expanded the categories of crime for which the death penalty might, or in some cases must, apply, and that several States did not restrict the use of the death penalty to the most serious crimes. In particular, in some countries the majority of death sentences handed down and executions carried out were for drug-related offences. It was also emphasized that international aid and United Nations assistance for drug enforcement in those countries lent legitimacy to the use of the death penalty for drug-related offences. It had been demonstrated that, since 2008, international assistance had contributed to the arrest, prosecution and subsequent sentencing to death of named drug suspects; the United Nations agency concerned had been called upon to take responsibility for its actions, but no real changes had been noticed. It was further noted, however, that donors had begun taking notice and had reportedly removed funding from drug enforcement programmes in certain cases. It was recommended that much needed funding be redirected to other efforts in those countries, and that donors freeze all financial support pending an investigation into how funding had been spent and until after the establishment of clear mechanisms for risk assessment and accountability. 33. With regard to the detention conditions of death row prisoners, it was noted that, whereas they were entitled to the same basic treatment as other categories of prisoners, in reality their detention conditions were frequently worse. They usually experienced: restrictions or total bans on visits from and correspondence with lawyers and family members; small cell size; lack of proper food; extreme temperatures; lack of ventilation; cells infested with insects; inactivity and inadequate time outside cells; isolation for long and indeterminate periods; and violence from other prisoners and prison officials. It was also emphasized that some or all of those conditions could contribute to the “death row phenomenon” that had been found to constitute inhuman and degrading punishment and 10