OREANDA-NEWS   The US Department of Justice has announced the simplification of a number of procedures related to the execution of death sentences, as well as the inclusion of firing squad in the list of methods of execution.

"Among the actions taken are updating the protocol on the introduction of lethal injection ... expanding the protocol to include additional methods of execution, such as the firing squad, as well as simplifying internal processes to speed up death penalty cases," the agency said in a statement on its website.