Authorities in Saudi Arabia are preparing to behead 50 men convicted on charges of terrorism, the BBC reported.
The individuals sentenced to death range from purported al-Qaeda militants accused of trying to seize the government to Shi‘ite Muslim activists from the eastern town of al-Awamiyah, a crucible of discontent over anti-Shi‘ite discrimination.
Three of the Shi‘ite detainees were arrested before they turned 18, the Independent reports.
Amnesty International has spoken out against the planned executions, citing the “macabre spike” in Saudi executions in 2015 — at least 151 so far this year, the highest figure in two decades — and what it says is the dubious judicial process that led to them.
“These executions must not go ahead and Saudi Arabia must lift the veil of secrecy around its death penalty cases, as part of a fundamental overhaul of its criminal justice system,” James Lynch, deputy director of Amnesty’s program centered on the Middle East and northern Africa, said in a statement.
- The Real Reason Florida Wants to Ban AP African-American Studies, According to an Architect of the Course
- Column: Tyre Nichols' Killing Is The Result of a Diseased Culture
- Without Evusheld, Immunocompromised People Are on Their Own Against COVID-19
- Here Are All the Movies and TV Shows That Make Up the New DCU
- TikTok's 'De-Influencing' Trend Is Here to Tell You What Stuff You Don't Need to Buy
- Column: America Goes About Juvenile Crime Sentencing All Wrong
- Why Your Tax Refund May Be Lower This Year
- Brazil Wants to Abandon a 34,000-Ton Ship at Sea. It Would be an Environmental Disaster
- The 5 Best New TV Shows Our Critic Watched in January 2023