Kathmandu, Jan 24: The United States is set to execute prisoners using nitrogen gas, marking the first instance of such a method in American history. Kenneth Eugene Smith, who received a death sentence in 1996 for the 1988 murder of a man’s wife after taking money from him, is scheduled for execution on January 25. Notably, Smith survived a poison injection in 2022. Despite legal challenges terming the method as torture, the government insists it induces immediate unconsciousness. Critics liken the untested method to a ‘human experiment.’ The United Nations opposes it, condemning the approach as inhuman and cruel. The execution involves placing Smith on a stretcher, applying an oxygen mask, fulfilling his last wish, and then releasing fatal nitrogen gas through the mask for at least 15 minutes. Smith’s lawyers argue potential risks and a lack of airtightness in the mask design, raising concerns about possible oxygen leakage and the risk of him being in a coma rather than dead. While lethal injection has been the conventional method, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and Alabama approved nitrogen gas for the death penalty in 2018. In November 2022, Smith’s execution by lethal injection was postponed due to difficulties locating his veins. The United Nations Human Rights Council has strongly criticized the use of such procedures for the death penalty, emphasizing their inhumane nature.