7 Men Convicted of Theft and Looting Executed in Saudi Arabia

Convicted of theft, looting and armed robbery, seven men were executed in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, reported the country's official news agency.

The convicts were arrested in 2006 and sentenced to death in 2009. The family of the convicts pleaded for their clemency to the king more than a week ago, the Saudi Press Agency reported.

They were beheaded in a southern city Abha in Asir. 

Earlier this month Human Rights Watch appealed to cancel their death sentences as the men were minors at the time of arrest. One of the executed was 15-year-old at the time of arrest, the AP reported.

"Executing these men would be an act of sheer brutality," Philip Luther, Amnesty International's Middle East Director said yesterday in a statement.

According to the recent reports in Saudi newspaper, the government was planning to drop execution as they did not have enough swordsmen and consider death sentence by shooting. It was also reported that the government was contemplating on lethal injections been given rather than public beheadings.

The country has the reputation of following strict implementation of Sharia law, which allows execution if convicted of murder, rape or armed robbery. This is mostly done with sword.

The kingdom beheaded 23 people this year, including the seven men, according to the AP. Last year the number of executions was 76 and in 2011, 79.

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