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Criticism of the execution poured in from around the world from organizations such as the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, the European Union and Amnesty International. “He was writhing and clearly suffering,” said Ravina Shamdasani, spokesperson for the U.N. Human Rights Office, at a U.N. briefing in Geneva. “Rather than looking for novel, untested methods to execute people, let’s just bring an end to the death penalty. This is an anachronism that doesn’t belong in the 21st century.”

The diplomatic service of the European Union issued a statement: “According to leading experts, this method is a particularly cruel and unusual punishment,” The 27-nation EU and the Geneva-based U.N. rights office assert the death penalty violates the right to life and does not deter crime.