U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland imposed a moratorium on federal executions while the Justice Department continues its review of the death penalty, the department said in a statement, writes Reuters.

“The Department of Justice must ensure that everyone in the federal criminal justice system is not only afforded the rights guaranteed by the Constitution and laws of the United States, but is also treated fairly and humanely. That obligation has special force in capital cases”, - Garland said in the statement.

His predecessor, William Barr, resumed use of capital punishment last year after a 17-year hiatus.

In the waning months of the administration of President Donald Trump, the Bureau of Prisons carried out 13 executions, as the COVID-19 pandemic raged throughout the federal prison system and sickened some of the prisoners on death row and even some of their attorneys.