A/HRC/24/18 during the widespread political protests in Khuzestan in the south-west region of the Islamic Republic of Iran in 2011. In a joint statement issued in January 2013, a group of special procedure mandate holders of the Human Rights Council urged the Iranian authorities to halt the execution of five individuals belonging to the Ahwazi community who were at imminent risk of execution for charges including “Moharebeh”, “Mufsid-filArz” (“corruption on Earth”) and spreading propaganda against the system.32 34. The Human Rights Committee regretted that Kenya imposes the death penalty for crimes such as robbery with violence, which do not qualify as “most serious crimes” within the meaning of article 6, paragraph 2 of the Covenant (CCPR/C/KEN/CO/3, paragraph 10). The Committee against Torture remained concerned about the high number of offences that carry the death penalty in Cuba, including common crimes and vaguely defined categories of State security-related offences (CAT/C/CUB/CO/2, paragraph 14). 35. In March 2013, the High Commissioner for Human Rights strongly condemned the execution of seven individuals in Saudi Arabia who were charged with organizing a criminal group, armed robbery and breaking into jewellery stores. The High Commissioner noted that such executions clearly violated international safeguards which stipulated that capital punishment may be imposed only for “the most serious crimes” and only after the most rigorous judicial process.33 36. The Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief reported that persons belonging to religious minorities are frequently exposed to increased risks of criminalization and accusations of “blasphemy”, which in some countries carry harsh sanctions, including the death penalty (A/HRC/22/51, paragraph 53). The Special Rapporteur also reported that, in various regions of the world, converts are confronted with difficulties when trying to live in conformity with their convictions. Some States have criminal laws that impose the death penalty for acts of conversion (A/67/303, paragraph 36; A/HRC/22/51, paragraph 53). 37. In 2012, individuals were reportedly charged in Pakistan for offences relating to religion, including under the “blasphemy” provisions of the Penal Code punishable by the death penalty.34 In the Islamic Republic of Iran, a Christian pastor who was sentenced to death for crime of “apostasy from Islam” in 2011 was retried, but finally acquitted in September 2012.35 38. The use of the death penalty in counter-terrorism cases is also a serious concern. Several States continued to use the death penalty for a broad range of acts related to crimes of terrorism which may not meet the threshold of “most serious crimes”. The Government of Iraq maintained that it only executed individuals who committed terrorist acts or other serious crimes against civilians, and who were convicted under the Anti-Terrorism Law No. 13 of 2005. However, the broad scope and wide application of article 4 of the AntiTerrorism Law of Iraq remains a serious concern, since it envisages the death penalty for a wide range of terrorism-related acts, not all of which meet the threshold of “most serious crimes”. 32 33 34 35 See “Iran: UN rights experts urge Government to halt the execution of five Ahwazi activists”. Available at www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=12952&LangID=E. See “Pillay says Saudi Arabian executions violate international standards”. Available at http://www.ohchr.org/en/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=13139&LangID=E. “State of Human Rights in 2012”, Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, Lahore, 2013; available at http://hrcp-web.org/hrcpweb/wp-content/pdf/AR2012.pdf, p.49, 55. Amnesty International, op. cit., p. 33. 9