![]() Last month the Supreme Court upheld the death sentence of Sheikh Nimr Baqir al-Nimr, a prominent Shi’a Muslim cleric from the Kingdom’s Eastern Province, after a politicized and grossly unfair trial at Saudi Arabia’s notorious counter-terror court (the Specialized Criminal Court). The use of the death penalty is abhorrent in any circumstance but it is especially alarming that the Saudi Arabian authorities continue to use it in violation of international human rights law and standards, on such a wide scale, and after trials which are grossly unfair and sometimes politically motivated James LynchĬoncerns over the increase in executions have been further compounded by the apparent use of the death penalty as a political tool to clamp down on Saudi Arabian Shi’a Muslim dissidents. “The use of the death penalty is abhorrent in any circumstance but it is especially alarming that the Saudi Arabian authorities continue to use it in violation of international human rights law and standards, on such a wide scale, and after trials which are grossly unfair and sometimes politically motivated,” said James Lynch. Foreign nationals, mostly migrant workers from developing countries, are particularly vulnerable as they typically lack knowledge of Arabic and are denied adequate translation during their trials. The death penalty is disproportionately used against foreigners in Saudi Arabia. The total number of foreign nationals executed so far this year is 71. ![]() Of the 63 people executed this year for drug-related charges, the vast majority, 45 people, were foreign nationals. Under international human rights standards “most serious crimes” are crimes that involve intentional killing. This blatantly contradicts the Saudi Arabian authorities’ claims to apply the death penalty with the strictest safeguards in place. ![]() Īlmost half of the 151 executions carried out this year were for offences that do not meet the threshold of “most serious crimes” for which the death penalty can be imposed under international human rights law. This was documented in Amnesty International’s August 2015 report Killing in the Name of Justice: The death penalty in Saudi Arabia. In 2014 the total number of executions carried out was 90 – meaning that so far there has been a 68% increase in executions over the whole of last year.ĭeath sentences in Saudi Arabia are frequently imposed for non-lethal offences, such as drug-related ones, and after unfair trials which lack basic safeguards for fair trial provided for under international human rights law and standards. The Saudi Arabian authorities appear intent on continuing a bloody execution spree which has seen at least 151 people put to death so far this year – an average of one person every two days James Lynch, Deputy Middle East and North Africa Director at Amnesty InternationalĪccording to Amnesty International’s records, the last time Saudi Arabia executed more than 150 people in a single year was in 1995, when 192 executions were recorded. “The Saudi Arabian authorities appear intent on continuing a bloody execution spree which has seen at least 151 people put to death so far this year – an average of one person every two days,” said James Lynch, Deputy Director at Amnesty International’s Middle East and North Africa Programme. ![]() The latest execution took place on 9 November. Annual execution tolls for Saudi Arabia in recent years have rarely exceeded 90 for the entire year. So far in 2015, on average, one person has been executed every other day. Press Release NovemSaudi Arabia: 151 executed this year in highest recorded toll in nearly two decadesĪt least 151 people have been put to death in Saudi Arabia so far this year –the highest recorded figure since 1995 – in an unprecedented wave of executions marking a grim new milestone in the Saudi Arabian authorities’ use of the death penalty, said Amnesty International. ![]()
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