Four Iranians and three Pakistanis have been sentenced to death in Kuwait for trafficking in drugs, a newspaper reported Thursday.
The death sentences were all issued on Wednesday by two criminal court judges in two separate cases, Al-Rai Al-Aam said.
In the first case, Iranians Abdulmaaboud Aashour, Abdulbaqi Mohammad, Saeed Khalaf and Younis Mubarak were convicted of smuggling some 60 kilos (132 pounds) of hashish and a small quantity of opium.
They were caught in September by Kuwait's coastguard while attempting to smuggle the narcotics into the emirate on a small boat. They were also ordered to pay a fine of 325,000 dollars.
In the second case Ayub Khan, Tareq Khan and Sayed Khan, Pakistanis were found guilty of trafficking in two kilos (4.4 pounds) of heroin. The three were arrested in March.
Kuwait's criminal court sentenced seven Pakistanis and one Kuwaiti to death in September and October for trafficking in drugs.
Death sentences in Kuwait can be appealed twice and must receive the final approval of the emir, who has the right to commute them.
Most of the heroin smuggled into Kuwait comes from Pakistan and Afghanistan, but Iran is the main source for hashish. More than 100,000 Pakistanis, 66,000 Iranians some 10,000 Afghans live in the emirate.
Kuwait and Iran in October signed an agreement to combat drugs and terrorism and extradite criminals.
Despite stiff penalties, both drug use and trafficking continue to rise. More than half the number of court cases in Kuwait concern drugs.
Kuwait has executed 17 people since the 1991 Gulf War. Twenty-eight people convicted of serious crimes are on death row in the emirate.
Fifty-seven people died of drug overdoses in Kuwait during 1999, according to official figures -- KUWAIT CITY (AFP)
© 2000 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
