Afghan police officers sentenced to death for killing civilians

Afghan police officers sentenced to death for killing civilians

2011-10-30 08:00:15 GMT+7 (ICT)

KANDAHAR (BNO NEWS) -- Two Afghan police officers were sentenced to death on Saturday for killing six civilians accused of planting roadside bombs in southern Afghanistan, the provincial government said.

The two Afghan Border Police officers, who were assigned to the Spin Buldak District, were sentenced to death by a Kandahar Appeal Court in front of a public crowd. Four others were sentenced to 3, 13, 20 and 20 years for their alleged involvement in the killings.

The two police officers who were sentenced to death are brothers and were previously charged with the killings of six local civilians who the Afghan Border Police were accusing of supporting insurgents and planting improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in the area.

"The decisions were announced by [the] head of the Kandahar Appeal Court after all evidence and documents were shown to the assigned prosecutor and defense attorney this morning," a spokesperson for the provincial government said, adding that the detainees will "face their punishment very soon."

The spokesperson added: "Law is equal to everybody and everybody is the same to law."

According to Amnesty International, no executions were reported in Afghanistan in both 2009 and 2010. However, the human rights organization said at least 100 people were sentenced to death in 2010 and had their sentences confirmed by the Supreme Court.

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