EU, UN Human Rights Office express regret over execution of a man using nitrogen gas in Alabama

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union and the U.N. Human Rights Office have expressed regret over the first execution of a man with nitrogen gas in the U.S. state of Alabama. The EU called the method “particularly cruel.” It and the Geneva-based U.N. rights office say the death penalty violates the right to life and does not deter crime. Kenneth Eugene Smith was put to death in Alabama with pure nitrogen gas, a first-of-its-kind execution that placed the United States at the forefront of the debate over capital punishment.