Saudi Arabia has executed 134 people this year, including six who were kids when they were arrested.
The prisoners were killed by brutal methods that have been frowned upon, including crucifixion and beheading, according to a human rights organisation.
At least 58 of those killed were foreign nationals and most were accused of spreading Shia Islam – a crime in the Sunni Arab state.
There were 21 Pakistanis, 15 Yemenis, five from Syria and four from Egypt. Two Jordanians, two Nigerians, a Somalian and two from unidentified nations were also included in the figures.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman pledged to reduce the use of the death penalty in the oppressive Arab kingdom. But, in spite of his promise, there is a rise in state executions.
In a report presented at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, The Death Penalty Project revealed a further 24 people are at “imminent risk'”of execution. They include three children, prominent political opponents of the crown prince, clerics, and human rights campaigners.
At least six teens were executed this year after being arrested for supposed “crimes” when they were kids, the report claims.
An event hosted by The Death Penalty Project highlighted the “illegal and arbitrary executions” in Saudi Arabia as well as human rights abuses for both detainees and their families.
Experts said these abuses have been “exacerbated by the systematic torture of detainees and grossly unfair trials culminating in death sentences”.
Among those executed this year are three women and 51 who were facing drug charges that would be considered minor offences elsewhere in the world.
On April 22, a horrific mass execution was carried out by the savage regime involving 37 men being killed. One was crucified and another had his head impaled on a spike, The Sun UK reports.
Those killed during the beheading bloodbath had all been convicted of “terrorism offences” in the hardline kingdom.
One of those beheaded was Abdulkareem al-Hawaj. He was arrested while attending an anti-government protest when he was aged just 16.
Abdulkareem al-Hawaj
He was executed by beheading. His head was cut from his body in front of a baying, bloodthirsty crowd along with 36 other men.
At least one of the bodies were reportedly crucified and put out on display after the execution.
Another victim, Mujtaba al-Sweikat, was a teenager who was set to start a new life in the US, studying at Western Michigan University, when he was arrested for attending an anti-government protest at age 17.
Mujtaba al-Sweikat
He was badly beaten including on the soles of his feet before he “confessed” to crimes against the state. Human rights charities claim he was also tortured into confessing and convicted in a “sham trial.”
Sentencing a person to death who is aged under 18 is banned under international law.
