New Iran Executions Reported Amid Western Protests

Reports from Iran say 12 more people have been executed for a variety of offenses amid a surge in the use of the death penalty there.

Media report that six inmates were executed in two prisons in the southeastern province of Kerman on November 4.

The same day, an ethnic Kurd, Shirkoo Morarefi, was executed in the northwestern province of Kurdistan.

The executions took place one day after five convicts were reportedly executed in the western city of Kermanshah.

The European Union and Human Rights Watch (HRW) last week reiterated calls for Tehran to end its use of the death penalty following reports that Iran had executed 18 people on October 26.

HRW says more than 400 executions have been documented in Iran so far in 2013.

Amnesty International said the executions show Iranian authorities "continue to rely on state-sponsored killing."

With reporting by IRINN and ISNA