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Christian Old Testament:
“ Had it been in the Old Testament Harry Potter would have been put to death. ”
—Becky Fischer, Jesus Camp
The Christian Old Testament contains a large number of crimes which demand the death penalty.
The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (the source for the Christian Old Testament), which forms the core texts of the Halakha, or corpus of Jewish divine law, include a surprising number of crimes which merit the death penalty as punishment. These laws were believed to form an integral part of the overall "Covenant" between the Israelites and YHWH. When the Christians adopted the Old Testament as their canon, neither they as a body, or Jesus as the Messiah revised or redacted any of these laws, for all they edited the Hebrew texts.

Quran. The Role of Death Penalty:
The death penalty has been outlawed in a majority of the world's nations, but continues to be used widely in the Middle East. o­ne of the main reasons for the use of capital punishment in this region is that it is clearly permitted by the Quran, the Islamic holy text. As such, most nations that consider Islam to be the state religion (including Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, among others) and all Islamic states (including Afghanistan, Bahrain, Brunei, Iran, Mauritania, Oman, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Yemen) permit and often encourage the use of the death penalty.

Several verses in the Quran support the use of capital punishment when used as a lawful means of seeking justice. For example, a favorite quote in the Quran regarding the death penalty states,"...Take not life, which God has made sacred, except by way of justice and law. Thus does He command you, so that you may learn wisdom" (6:151). Basically, this means that although murder is considered a sin, it is permissible to utilize capital punishment when required by law.

Muslims who support the death penalty believe that its use provides an effective deterrent against crime and as such, helps to promote justice. Islamic law permits the use of the death penalty as a punishment against intentional murder and Fasaad fi al-ardh, which translates to "spreading mischief throughout the land." This type of crime is interpreted in a variety of ways, but can include rape, adultery, treason, apostasy, piracy, sodomy and homosexual behavior.

Although capital punishment is still widely supported in Islamic states and nations in which Islam is the state religion, there are growing groups of Muslims that support the abolishment of the death penalty. Those who oppose capital punishment disagree with the mainstream interpretation of Quran passages regarding capital punishment.

Islamic law prescribes the death penalty as one of a number of possible "punishments". But there is not unanimity about when or if the death penalty must be applied. The application of the death penalty is in fact not automatic upon conviction in Islam and so the question for Muslims is when and how it should be applied. There is debate within Muslim legal circles and within some Muslim societies about the use and non-application of the death penalty.

Jewish View:
According to the Mishnah (Sanhedrin 1:4) the death penalty could only be inflicted, after  trial, by a Sanhedrin composed of twenty-three judges and there were four types of death penalty (Sanhedrin 7:1): stoning, burning, slaying (by the sword), and strangling. A bare reading of these and the other accounts in the tractate would seem to suggest a vast proliferation of the death penalty. Yet, throughout the Talmudic literature, this whole subject is viewed with unease, so much so that according to the rules stated in that literature the death penalty could hardly ever have been imposed.

For instance, it is ruled that two witnesses are required to testify not only that they witnessed the act for which the criminal has been charged but that they had warned him beforehand that if he carried out the act he would be executed, and he had to accept the warning, stating his willingness to commit the act despite his awareness of its consequences. The criminal's own confession is not accepted as evidence. Moreover, circumstantial evidence is not admitted.

Hindusiam:
Ancient Hindu civilization had a highly developed system of religious, civil and criminal law. The"Dharmasasbras" and "Arthasastras" are the most detailed commentaries on these laws. The Dharmasasbras describes many crimes and their punishments and calls for the death penalty, even for crimes not resulting in death of another human being. But there are aspects of Hindu teaching which can be invoked to prevent the use of the death penalty.
First of all the Mahabharata itself contains passages arguing against the use of the death penalty in all cases. This is a relevant example:
The Mahabharata argues against the use of the death penalty is a dialogue between King Dyumatsena and his son Prince Satyavan (Chapter 257 of the Santiparva). In this scene a number of men had been brought out for execution a the command of the King. Prince Satyavan then says "Sometimes virtue assumes the form of sin and sin assumes the form of virtue. It is not possible that the destruction of individuals can ever be virtuous". King Dyumatsena replies: "If the spring of those who should be killed be virtuous, if robbers be spared, Satyavan, all distinction
between virtue and vice will disappear". Satyavan responds: "Without destroying the body of the offender, the king should punish him as ordained by the scriptures. The king should not act
otherwise, neglecting to reflect upon the character of the offence and upon the science of morality. By killing the wrongdoer the King kills a large number of his innocent men. Behold by killing a single robber, his wife, mother, father and children, all are killed. When injured by wicked persons, the king should therefore think seriously on the question of punishment. Sometimes a wicked person is seen to imbibe good conduct from a pious man. It is seen that good children
spring from wicked persons. The wicked should not therefore be exterminated. The extermination of the wicked is not in consonance with the eternal law."
The Hindu notion of punishment is not based on revenge. Rather, punishment in the Hindu scheme of things should be aimed at restoring the proper social order, restoring the dharma and protecting the innocent. The punishment has to be administered in accordance with other important Hindu values. It must not be a punishment that would itself be a further offence or unjust. The Dharmasasbras describes the duties which must be observed in administerin .

Europe:
Europe is today the only region in the world where the death penalty is no longer applied. All the Council of Europe's 47 member states have either abolished capital punishment or instituted a moratorium on executions.

The Council of Europe played a leading role in the battle for abolition, believing that the death penalty has no place in democratic societies.

This determination to eradicate the death penalty was reflected in Protocol No.6 to the European Convention on Human Rights. It followed an initiative from the Parliamentary Assembly to abolish the death penalty in peacetime and was adopted in April 1983. In 2002, another important step was taken with the adoption of Protocol No. 13 on the abolition of capital punishment in all circumstances, even for acts committed in time of war.

The Council has made abolition of the death penalty a prerequisite for membership. As a result, no execution has taken place on the territory of the organisation’s member states since 1997.

The Parliamentary Assembly continues to monitor the capital punishment issue. It has extended its action to countries enjoying observer status with the Council. This mainly concerns Japan and the United States.

America:
Year 1608 : 1st person sentenced to death in America. The person was hanged for spying for the Spanish government. He was living in Jamestown colony, the 1st British colony in America (in present day Virginia near Williamsburg).

Year 1777 : Thomas Jefferson attempts to change Virginia's death penalty laws so that only murder and treason are punishable by death. His bill, the Bill for Proportioning Crimes and Punishments in Cases Heretofore Capital, is defeated by one vote.

Year 1924 : The gas chamber becomes a popular execution method. It's seen as a more humane alternative to the electric chair. Currently, lethal injection is deemed the most humane method and almost all executions are by lethal injection.

Year 1958 : Supreme Court interprets the 8th Amendment's "cruel and unusual punishment" through the "evolving standard of decency that marks the progress of a maturing society" while reviewing Trop v. Dulles. This takes into account the change of what is deemed a humane execution. Originally it was hanging, then the electric chair, then the gas chamber and now lethal injection. It's hoped that the "evolving standards of decency" will one day prohibit excecutions as "cruel and unusual punishment."

Year 1996 : Anti-Terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act.
Changed the appeals process, making it much harder for Death Row inmates to get a wrongful conviction overturned. No longer allows more than one federal appeal unless a 3-judge panel agrees that the state court acted "unreasonably.""Effective Death Penalty" refers to shortening the time between conviction and execution by lessening the number of appeals a prisoner can make (currently, the average time spent on Death Row is 10 years, partly due to waiting for the prisoner's appeals to progress through the court system).

Year 2004 : NY abolishes its DP. The state's high court finds it unconstitutional.

Will Africa Abolish the Death Penalty?
In April 12-15, I represented IHEU at the regional conference on the abolition of the death penalty for North and West Africa. The conference, organized by the Working Group on the Death Penalty of the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights(ACHPR), was held at Benin Atlantic Beach Hotel, Cotonou in the Republic of Benin.

Sixty three participants representing 13 member states of the African Union and state parties to the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights namely- Algeria, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, Egypt, Libya, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Saharawi Republic, Senegal, Tunisia and Gambia, AU organs, UN agencies, National Human Rights Commissions, Academic institutions, International and national NGOs attended the event.

The objectives of the conference were among others to:
-debate the issues concerning the death penalty
- gather information about the consequences of the death penalty
- establish the fact that the penalty is a serious human rights abuse
-sensitize stakeholders on the consequences of applying the death penalty
-take a position concerning the abolition of the death penalty which is consistent with the world trend
- adopt political and legal strategies to give effect to the abolition
-engage relevant stakeholders on the continent to adopt a framework on the question of the death penalty in Africa
- explore the adoption of a Protocol on the abolition of the death penalty in Africa.

The opening session was chaired by the head of the ACHPR, Ms Reine Alapini Gansou while the Ministers of Justice and Foreign Affairs represented the government of Benin. In her opening speech, the Chairperson of the Working Group on the Death Penalty in Africa, Ms Zainabo Kayitesi pointed out some of the achievements of the Working Group in the past years. She underscored the importance of dialogue and consultation in the efforts to abolish the death penalty in Africa. The government of Benin reiterated its support and endorsement of the efforts to abolish capital punishment and urged other members states to do so. Benin has observed a de facto moratorium on executions since 1993. It voted for and co-sponsored the two UN resolutions for a universal moratorium.

Geneva 12 Aug 1949: The undersigned Plenipotentiaries of the Governments represented at the Diplomatic Conference held at Geneva from April 21 to August 12, 1949, for the purpose of establishing a Convention for the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, have agreed as follows:

Part I. General Provisions

Article 1. The High Contracting Parties undertake to respect and to ensure respect for the present Convention in all circumstances.

Art. 2. In addition to the provisions which shall be implemented in peace-time, the present Convention shall apply to all cases of declared war or of any other armed conflict which may arise between two or more of the High Contracting Parties, even if the state of war is not recognized by one of them.

The Convention shall also apply to all cases of partial or total occupation of the territory of a High Contracting Party, even if the said occupation meets with no armed resistance.

Although one of the Powers in conflict may not be a party to the present Convention, the Powers who are parties thereto shall remain bound by it in their mutual relations. They shall furthermore be bound by the Convention in relation to the said Power, if the latter accepts and applies the provisions thereof.

Art. 3. In the case of armed conflict not of an international character occurring in the territory of one of the High Contracting Parties, each Party to the conflict shall be bound to apply, as a minimum, the following
provisions: 

Mahatma Gandhi:

An eye for an eye would make the whole world blind. - Mahatma Gandhi.

This is a famous quote that many people cite when they pitch for the abolishment of capital punishment (death penalty) from the judicial process. The lengthy list of the terms which are not quite acceptable in a democracy begins with terms like capital punishment and death penalty. That, however, doesn't mean that this form of punishment is not acceptable in a democracy. In fact, two of the largest democracies in the world - India and the United States of America, both have the provision for capital punishment as a part of their legal system.