Saudi Arabia Beheaded 59 People So Far This Year - But Hardly Anyone is
Talking About It
By <
https://news.vice.com/contributor/tom-breakwell> Tom Breakwell
October 16, 2014 | 8:55 pm
The string of beheadings of American and British hostages at the hands of
the Islamic State has drawn horror and intense media scrutiny the world
over, redoubling international determination to defeat the extremist group.
But with IS dominating headlines, it is easy to forget that Saudi Arabia, a
member of the UN's Human Rights Council and a close ally of America in the
war against the Islamist fighters, is itself routinely carrying out the
practice of beheading.
Since January of this year, 59 people have been beheaded in Saudi Arabia
under the country's antiquated legal system based primarily around sharia
law.
Last month saw Saudi Arabia behead at least 8 people - twice the number of
Western hostages who have so far featured in IS's barbaric execution videos.
In August those executed by Riyadh were sentenced to death for crimes such
as apostasy, adultery and "sorcery." In one case, four members of the same
family were executed for "receiving large quantities of hashish," a sentence
imposed, according to Amnesty International, on the basis of "forced
confessions extracted through torture."
The human rights group has
<
http://www.amnesty.org/en/news/saudi-arabia-four-family-members-executed-ha
shish-possession-amid-disturbing-surge-executions-2> reported a "disturbing
surge" in executions in the kingdom. Said Boumedouha, deputy director of
Amnesty International's Middle East and North Africa Program, said that many
are executed for petty crimes, highlighting the frequent and seemingly
casual imposition of such sentences.
"The use of the death penalty in Saudi Arabia is so far removed from any
kind of legal parameters that it's almost hard to believe," Boumedouha
remarked.
Mohammed Saad-al Beshi, a Saudi state executioner, told Arab News in 2003
that he felt that he was carrying out "God's work" and that "when prisoners
get to the execution square, their strength drains away."
The practice is not confined to adults. According to Amnesty International,
Saudi Arabia executed at least one person under the age of 18 this year, a
violation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.
The manner by which confessions are extracted also paints a bleak picture,
activists say. "The executions of people accused of petty crimes and on the
basis of 'confessions' extracted through torture has become shamefully
common in Saudi Arabia," Boumedouha said.
The UN has sought to distance itself from Saudi Arabia on the issue, despite
the membership of Saudi Arabia upon the UN Human Rights Council, a position
it was elected to by the UN General Assembly.
In September, Juan Mendez, the UN special rapporteur on torture,
<
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=48672#.VD6l9NTF_EN%29->
remarked that "beheadings as a form of execution is cruel, inhuman and
degrading treatment and prohibited under international law under all
circumstances."
Independent experts appointed by the UN Human Rights Council have also been
quick to denounce the kingdom's brutal practice, commenting that "the
practice of beheading, especially after unfair trials for crimes that may
not carry the death penalty under international law, is shocking and grossly
inappropriate."
However, as an oil rich Western ally seen as key to the US-led offensive
against IS, there remains little hope, at least within the short term, of
large scale international condemnation.
Received on Thu Oct 16 2014 - 17:35:34 EDT