Iranian woman convicted of adultery could be executed today

Instructions to hang Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani have been sent to the prison where she is being held.

Ashtiani, who has already been punished with 99 lashes, was originally sentenced to death by stoning but that sentence was commuted to death by hanging after international outcry. Iranian courts have convicted her of adultery as well as complicity in her husband’s 2005 murder. At one point she appeared on state television and confessed to the murder, but she later retracted, saying the confession had been coerced. The International Committee against Executions said that the likelihood of her execution is now “very high” as the prison in Tabriz where she is being held has received written authorization to carry out her sentence. Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon said yesterday he was "deeply troubled" that Ashtiani could be killed soon.