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Saudi Arabia is once again planning to execute religious activists, according to the "Middle East Eye" website. Madawi Al-Rasheed, an expert on Saudi society, says mass executions are becoming common in the Gulf kingdom.
Middle East Eye, an online platform devoted to news from the region, has reported on Saudi plans to imminently execute three religious activists. Clerics Salman al-Odah, Awad al-Qarni and Ali al-Omari are expected to be put to death once Ramadan, the Muslim month of fasting, ends on June 4.
The German branch of Reporters Without Borders, along with Human Rights Watch head Kenneth Roth, immediately shared the news on Twitter. And Al-Jazeera and other Arabic media have also started covering the news.
The Gulf monarchy last carried out such an execution in April, when 37 where put to death. DW spoke with Madawi Al-Rasheed, a London-based social anthropologist originally from Saudi Arabia, about whether Riyadh is planning another wave of politically-motivated executions.
DW: Can you confirm the report that three Muslim clerics are about to be executed in Saudi-Arabia?
Madawi Al-Rasheed: Based on what I know, Saudi courts have not yet handed down the death sentence. But the public prosecutor is clearly considering the death penalty. The judiciary has brought 37 charges against cleric Salman...