Riyadh: In Saudi Arabia, known for its extremely strict rules and regulations, 81 people were executed on Saturday. This is the record of the crucifixion of so many people in the recent history of the Arab countries. For those who were given this punishment, many heinous crimes like rape, murder, attack on places of worship, links with terrorists were proved. Among them were people associated with terrorist organizations Al-Qaeda, Islamic State (IS), and Huthi.
Saudi Press Agency quoted Saudi Arabia’s Interior Ministry as saying that 73 of these people sentenced to death were Saudi citizens. Seven were from Yemen and one from Syria. These people were accused of targeting religious places and government institutions, killing security officials, kidnapping, torture, rape, etc. Apart from this, the offenses of smuggling weapons with the intention of spreading anarchy in the country were also proved.
Although Saudi Arabia is known for its very strict laws, for the first time the death penalty has been given to prisoners on such a large scale. Earlier, the record of beheading 63 people was made in 1980. Then together so many people were given death sentences after the capture of Mecca Masjid. In 1979, some 200 Salafi Muslims, led by Saudi preacher Zuheman al-Otaybi, captured the Mecca Masjid and killed hundreds of people. If we look at the recent figures, in 2019, 37 people were sentenced to death in Saudi Arabia. In January 2016, 47 people were beheaded. Let us tell you that Saudi Arabia is one of the countries with the highest death penalty in the world.
Questions are also being raised on the death sentence given to 81 people simultaneously. Some organizations are accusing these people of not being given a full opportunity of being heard. However, Saudi Arabia has denied this. According to Saudi media, the government has said that the accused were given a lawyer to present their case. The judicial process was followed. 13 judges found these people guilty after hearing at three levels.
