The European Union has vowed to step up efforts aimed at a global ban of the death penalty in the wake of the recent executions of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein and two of his aides.
German Justice Minister Brigitte Zypries said on Tuesday the bloc was planning to submit a resolution to the United Nations to put the moratorium on the agenda of the UN General Assembly.

"We all believe that the death penalty is something that should be rejected," her colleague, German Interior Minister Wolfgang Schäuble, told reporters after informal talks with his and Zypries' EU counterparts in the eastern German city of Dresden.

"The EU will continue to campaign for a worldwide abolition," he stressed.

Italy has been pushing for a global moratorium on capital punishment since Iraq executed former dictator Saddam Hussein two and a half weeks ago. Rome, which is currently a member of the 15-member UN Security Council, says the 27-member EU should try to increase international support for the diplomatic bid.

Botched execution
A botched hanging in Iraq on Monday, which was condemned by European leaders, may have rallied more EU states to the cause.

Two of Saddam Hussein's aides, his half-brother Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti and former judge Awad Hamed al-Bandar, were executed for crimes against humanity. Al-Tikriti's head was accidentally ripped off his body by the noose that hanged him.

"Reports on the gruesome circumstances of (Monday's) executions are very disturbing," said Irish Foreign Minister Dermot Ahern. "I believe it is in the interests of justice and reconciliation in Iraq that the Iraqi authorities now take the step of ending executions."

Hours after the execution, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said he backed Italy's campaign to put a stop to capital punishment.

"I believe in our European values and I take this occasion to thank Italy for all the initiatives that it announced so that, in the framework of the United Nations, we can work together to put an end to the death penalty."

The hangings in Iraq were carried out despite international appeals to halt them, including from UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, the EU and human rights groups that argued the trial was flawed and unfair.

Experts say influential EU members, such as Germany, will be unwilling to irk the United States and other commercial partners such as Iran and China, which back the death penalty.

Capital punishment is banned in the EU, but continues to be permitted in 68 other countries.