NOVANEWS
Saudi authorities on Monday severed the hand of a Yemeni national convicted of repeated theft, under the medieval interpretation of Islamic law enforced in Saudi Arabia.
A court had ordered the amputation of Ibrahim Abdulrahman Hazbar’s right hand after convicting him of a “series of thefts,” the interior ministry said.
The punishment was carried out in the western city of Mecca, home to the holiest sites in Islam.
US-ally Saudi Arabia implements a wide range of brutal punishments, including flogging, hefty fines and exaggerated prison sentences, for minor crimes.
Last week, Saudi authorities extended the detention of two women’s rights activists by 25 days, one of whom tried to drive into the kingdom in defiance of a ban.
Other non-lethal crimes such as “adultery,” armed robbery, “apostasy,” drug-related offenses, rape, “witchcraft”, and “sorcery” are all punishable by death in the kingdom.
According to an AFP tally, 80 convicts have been executed in the country this year, despite international concerns over the number and judicial process.
The oil-rich kingdom saw the third highest number of executions in the world last year, according to Amnesty International.
In September, two independent human rights experts working on behalf of the United Nations expressed concern about the judicial process in Saudi Arabia and called for an immediate moratorium on the death penalty.
“Despite several calls by human rights bodies, Saudi Arabia continues to execute individuals with appalling regularity and in flagrant disregard of international law standards,” said Christof Heyns, the UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions.
Political activism can also be penalized by death, as Saudi Arabia, like neighboring Bahrain, has taken a zero tolerance approach to all attempts at protest or dissent in the kingdom, including by liberal rights activists, Islamists, and members of the Shia minority.
Saudi judges have this year passed death sentences down to five pro-democracy advocates, including prominent activist and cleric Nimr al-Nimr, for their part in protests.
The new Saudi Terrorism law issued early this year casts a wide net over what it considers to be “terrorism.”
Under the law, punishable offenses include ”calling for atheist thought in any form,” “throwing away loyalty to the country’s rulers,” and “seeking to shake the social fabric or national cohesion.”
”These broad provisions contain language that prosecutors and judges are already using to prosecute and convict independent activists and peaceful dissidents,” Human Rights Watch said in a statement.
