Gambia: Jammeh Halts Executions Amid Outcry

Gambian President Yahya Jemmeh

 Gambian President Yahya Jemmeh has ordered that execution of prisoners on death row be suspended, amid an international outcry.

 The executions were the first in The Gambia, a popular tourist destination, in 27 years, and human rights groups say it was mostly political prisoners who died.

Furthermore, reports says the president was responding to "numerous appeals".
But it warned that the halt could be temporary.

"What happens next will be dictated by either declining violent crime rate, in which case the moratorium will be indefinite, or an increase in violent crime rate, in which case the moratorium will be lifted automatically," the statement said, according to Reuters news agency.

The executions were opposed by the African Union as well as human rights groups.
Benin, which currently holds the chair of the African Union, sent its foreign minister to The Gambia to warn Mr Jammeh not to carry out any executions.

On Friday, a Gambian opposition political grouping told the BBC it was planning to create a government in exile in neighbouring Senegal within days.

Meanwhile, Nine prisoners have been executed since his vow in August to clear death row.


Source: BBC