The Death Penalty in the OSCE Area–Background Paper 2018 United Nations General Assembly Resolution 70/146: Torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment (17 December 2015) […] Recognizing that States must protect the rights of those facing criminal sentences, including the death penalty and life imprisonment without the possibility of parole, and of other affected persons in accordance with their international obligations, […] United Nations General Assembly Resolution 72/163: Torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment (19 December 2017) […] Recognizing that States must protect the rights of those facing criminal sentences, including the death penalty and life imprisonment without the possibility of parole, and of other affected persons in accordance with their international obligations, […] Report of the United Nations Secretary-General, Question of the death penalty, A/HRC/24/18 (2013) […] 59. In his report to the General Assembly, the Special Rapporteur on Torture noted that there is no categorical evidence that any method of execution in use today complies with the prohibition of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. Even if the required safeguards are in place, all methods of execution currently used can inflict inordinate pain and suffering. States cannot guarantee that there is a pain-free method of execution (A/67/279, paragraph 41). […] VIII. Conclusions 78. Developments on the question of the death penalty during the reporting period suggest that the trend towards abolition is continuing. However, numerous 57