As his country suffers
air strikes and an
imminent ground
invasion from Israel, a
Palestinian was
beheaded in Saudi Arabia on Monday after
being convicted of
forming a gang to carry
out robberies in the
kingdom, the interior
ministry said. Reaction from less
conservative countries
around the world has
brought up several
questions, one of which
is how beheading a man is a suitable punishment
for forming a gang.
Reports say 67 people
have already been
beheaded this year. “Mohammad Al Khalili
formed a gang with
others that carries out
thefts, burglaries, and
robbery against homes,”
said the statement carried by the official
SPA news agency. The execution, in the
port city of Jeddah,
brings to 67 the number
of people put to death
in Saudi Arabia so far
this year, according to an AFP tally based on
official reports. Amnesty International
says 79 people were
executed in the
conservative kingdom
last year. Rape, murder,
apostasy, armed robbery and drug
trafficking are all
punishable by death
under Sharia.