Two Saudis Beheaded for Armed Robbery
Saudi Arabia beheaded two nationals in the southwestern city of Jizan on Tuesday after they were convicted of armed robbery, the interior ministry announced.
"Mohammed bin Ahmed Kharmi and Musa bin Mohsen Kharmi lured a man and opened fire on him," said the ministry in a statement published by SPA state news agency, adding the victim, whose identity was not disclosed, was wounded.
The pair "stole the money he was carrying which belonged to the company he works for," said SPA. They were sentenced to death "due to the danger of their crime."
The beheadings bring to 55 the number of people executed in Saudi Arabia so far this year, according to an Agence France Presse tally based on official reports.
Amnesty International puts the number of people executed in the Gulf country last year at 79.
The death penalty is handed down in Saudi Arabia for a wide range of offences including murder, rape, apostasy, armed robbery and drug trafficking, as stipulated by Islamic sharia law.
Source: Agence France Presse
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