Almost twice as many people executed last year as in 2007
despite trend against death penalty  The number of executions
worldwide increased significantly last year, with China
responsible for almost three-quarters of them. Countries in Asia
and the Middle East are the most likely to use the death
penalty, with only one country in Europe still carrying out
executions.  There were a total of 2,390 executions worldwide in
2008, of which 1,718 or 72% took place in China. The figures
show a marked increase from 2007, when the total stood at 1,252,
according to research carried out by Amnesty International and
published today.  Although there has been a trend in recent
years for the abandonment of the death penalty, 25 countries
executed people last year. Amongst the countries that have
increased their rate of executions is Japan, which carried out
15, the highest number for more than 30 years. There were also
at least 8,864 death sentences handed down in 52 different
countries.  In Europe, only Belarus, with four