Syrians protest Arab vote; embassies attacked

BEIRUT (AP) — Tens of thousands of Syrian government supporters poured into the streets Sunday to protest an Arab League vote to suspend the country's membership, as Turkey sent planes to evacuate diplomatic staff and their families after a night of attacks on embassies.

Pro-Syrian regime protesters, carry a giant Syrian flag during a demonstration against the Arab League decision to suspend Syria, in Damascus, Syria, on Sunday Nov. 13, 2011. Tens of thousands of pro-regime demonstrators gathered in a Damascus square Sunday to protest the Arab League's vote to suspend Syria over its bloody crackdown on the country's eight-month-old uprising. Saturday's Arab League decision was a sharp rebuke to a regime that prides itself as a bastion of Arab nationalism, but it was unlikely to immediately end a wave of violence that the U.N. estimates has killed more than 3,500 people since mid-March. (AP Photo/Muzaffar Salman)

Facing growing isolation, the Syrian government called for an urgent Arab summit to discuss the country's spiraling political unrest and invited Arab League officials to visit before its membership suspension was to take effect on Wednesday.

In a significant concession, the government said the Arab officials could bring any civilian or military observers they deem appropriate to oversee implementation of an Arab League plan for ending the bloodshed.

The 22-member bloc's vote on Saturday was a stinging rebuke to a regime that prides itself as a bastion of Arab nationalism and left Syria increasingly isolated over its crackdown on an eight-month uprising that the U.N. estimates has killed more than 3,500 people since mid-March.

The violence continued Sunday, with activists reporting at least 11 people killed in shootings by security forces in several parts of the country.

The Local Coordination Committees activist network said at least four of the deaths occurred in the central city of Hama when security forces fired on a group of opposition protesters who infiltrated a pro-government rally in the area.

Sunday's protests in support of the government drew large numbers in the capital and four other cities — a turnout helped by the closure of businesses and schools.

"You Arab leaders are the tails of Obama," read one banner held by protesters accusing the Arab League of bowing to pressure from the U.S. president.

Thousands of people carried red, black and white Syrian flags and posters of President Bashar Assad in a Damascus square. Similar demonstrations were held in the cities of Aleppo, Latakia, Tartous and Hasakeh.

The Syrian leader asserts that extremists pushing a foreign agenda to destabilize Syria are behind the country's unrest, rather than true reform seekers aiming to open the country's autocratic political system. Sunday's demonstrators accused Arab countries of being complicit with the purported conspiracy.

The government called the Arab League decision "illegal," claiming it was intended to set the stage for foreign military intervention like in Libya.

However, the offer to allow a visit by an Arab League ministerial committee and accompanying monitors appeared to signal some will to try to implement an Arab League-brokered deal for ending the violence that the government has so far seemed unwilling or unable to do. The Nov. 2 deal calls for Syria to halt attacks on protesters, pull tanks out of cities and hold talks with the opposition.

There was no immediate reaction from Arab League officials on the Syrian invitation. Arab League Secretary General Nabil Elaraby, on a visit to Libya, demanded immediate implementation of the Arab peace initiative.

Youssef Ahmed, Syria's ambassador to the Arab League, said the official request for an emergency meeting was on its way to the organization and that Syria was awaiting a response.

Iraq's representative with the Arab League has offered Baghdad as a location for the meeting if it is approved.

Members of the Syrian opposition rejoiced and saw the Arab vote to suspend Syria as a step toward greater recognition for their movement.

"This gives strong legitimacy to our cause. ... We consider this decision to be a victory for the Syrian revolution," Bassma Kodmani, a spokeswoman for the Syrian National Council opposition group, told The Associated Press.

Hours after the Arab League vote, pro-regime demonstrators in Syria assaulted the diplomatic offices of countries critical of the Syrian government, including break-ins at the Saudi and Qatari embassies and attacks at Turkish diplomatic posts across the country.

The overnight embassy attacks are likely to stoke anger in Arab states against the regime in Damascus. Arab disapproval in itself may not seriously damage President Assad's hold on power, but if Syria further antagonizes Gulf states, it risks having them build up the Syrian opposition into a unified body that can win international recognition, as happened during Libya's civil war this year.

Syrian security forces had confronted Saturday night's protesters at embassies with batons and tear gas but were unable to stop a group from breaking into the Qatari embassy and bringing down the Qatari flag and replacing it with the Syrian flag. Others entered Saudi Arabia's embassy compound, broke windows and ransacked some areas, the kingdom's media reported.

The kingdom strongly condemned the attack in a Foreign Ministry statement and said it held the Syrian authorities responsible for protecting its interests.

Saudi King Abdullah, who has condemned Assad's crackdown, had already recalled the Saudi ambassador to Syria in August. Kuwait and Bahrain have also recalled their ambassadors.

Protesters also tried to break into the Turkish Embassy in Damascus Saturday and into the country's consulates in the cities of Aleppo and Latakia, Turkey's state-run Anatolia news agency reported. Turkey is not a member of the Arab League but has also been sharply critical of Syria's crackdown, and Turkey's foreign minister welcomed the League vote.

Turkey on Sunday sent a plane to Damascus to evacuate the families of its diplomats as well as nonessential staff, Anatolia reported. The Turkish Foreign Ministry also said Turkey summoned Syria's charge d'affaires who was given a formal protest note demanding protection for its diplomatic missions.

France also said it had summoned Syria's ambassador to "remind" him of Syria's international obligations, after demonstrators tried to attack an honorary French consulate in Latakia and another French office in Aleppo.

On Sunday, hundreds of baton-carrying Syrian riot police in helmets ringed the U.S., Qatari, Saudi and Turkish embassies — all located in the capital's upscale Abu Rummaneh district. Three fire trucks were parked in front of the Turkish Embassy. The Turkish and Qatari embassies were closed for the day but the Saudi Embassy was operating, an operator said.

Source: The Associated Press

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Muslim hajj pilgrims perform devil stoning ritual

MINA, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Chanting "God is great," millions of Muslims on Sunday stoned pillars representing the devil in a symbolic rejection of temptation on the second day of their annual hajj pilgrimage, a day that also marks the start of the Islamic holiday of Eid al-Adha.

Muslim pilgrims cast stones at a pillar, symbolizing the stoning of Satan, in a ritual called "Jamarat," the last rite of the annual hajj, in Mina near the Saudi holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, Sunday, Nov. 6, 2011. The annual Islamic pilgrimage draws 2.5 million visitors each year, making it the largest yearly gathering of people in the world. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Vast crowds cast pebbles as they flowed past the three pillars, which now resemble curved walls, in a four-level sprawling concrete structure built to expedite the flow of pilgrims. The ritual will be repeated for two more days, with participants eventually throwing stones at all three pillars.

he ritual in the desert valley of Mina commemorates Abraham's stoning of the devil, who is said to have appeared three times to the prophet to tempt him.

It is one of the most dangerous stages of the hajj, with the press of people around the pillars creating the risk of a stampede. In 2004, 244 people were killed, and the following year at least 360 others were killed when several pilgrims tripped over baggage while others behind them kept pushing ahead. Saudi authorities subsequently built the current complex to reduce the stampede danger.

Saudi authorities said Sunday that more than 2.9 million Muslims were performing the hajj this year.

Male pilgrims in the two-piece seamless white robes worn during the hajj, and women covered head to foot except for their hands and faces, chanted "God is great" while casting the pebbles.

"Hurry up, pilgrims," Saudi security officers called out through loudspeakers, to prevent crowds from building up next to the pillars.

Afterward, pilgrims shaved their heads or clipped off a lock of hair, a tradition dating back to the Prophet Muhammad's own pilgrimage. They are also required to slaughter a lamb or goat, representing the lamb that Abraham sacrificed in the place of his son Ishmael, although pilgrims may arrange for this to be done in a different location or in their own countries.

Sunday also marks the start of Eid al-Adha in remembrance of Abraham's near-sacrifice of his son.

"Thank God that we are doing hajj this year. May God protect all Arab and Islamic countries," said Dina Mohammed Ramadhan, a 27-year old pilgrim from Egypt, as she emerged from the crowed with her husband pushing her two babies in a carriage.

The five-day pilgrimage is packed with symbolism and ritual aimed at cleansing the soul of sin and winning absolution by tracing the footsteps of the Prophet Muhammad and of Abraham, whom Muslims view as a forefather of Islam.

Source: The Associated Press

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Saudi heir's death brings conservative to fore

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Saudi Arabia's ruling monarchy moved into a critical period of realignment Saturday after the death of the heir to the throne opened the way for a new crown prince: most likely a tough-talking interior minister who has led crackdowns on Islamic militants but also has shown favor to ultraconservative traditions such as keeping the ban on women voting.

Saudis watch a TV broadcast on the death of Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Saturday, Oct. 22, 2011. Prince Sultan died abroad Saturday after an illness, state TV said. Sultan, who was the kingdom's deputy prime minister and the minister of defense and aviation, has had a string of health issues. He underwent surgery in New York in February 2009 for an undisclosed illness and spent nearly a year abroad recuperating in the United States and at a palace in Agadir, Morocco. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

A state funeral is planned for Tuesday in Riyadh for crown prince Sultan bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud, who died in New York at the age of 80 after an unspecified illness, the official Saudi Press Agency said.

Now, Saudi rulers are expected to move quickly to name the new king-in-waiting — which royal protocol suggests will be Sultan's half brother, Prince Nayef.

Moving Nayef to the top of the succession ladder would not likely pose any risks to Saudi Arabia's pro-Western policies and, in particular, its close alliance with Washington. But Nayef cuts a much more mercurial figure than Saudi's current leader, the ailing King Abdullah, who has nudged ahead with reforms such as promising women voting rights in 2015 despite rumblings from the country's powerful religious establishment.

Nayef, 78, has earned U.S. praise for unleashing the internal security forces against suspected Islamic extremist cells in Saudi Arabia, which was home to 15 of 19 of the Sept. 11 hijackers. Yet he brought blistering rebukes in the West for a 2002 interview that quoted him as saying that "Zionists" — a reference to Jews — benefited from the 9-11 attacks because it turned world opinion against Islam and Arabs.

Nayef also has expressed displeasure at some of Abdullah's moves for more openness, saying in 2009 that he saw no need for women to vote or participate in politics. It's a view shared by many Saudi clerics, who follow a strict brand of Islam known as Wahhabism. Their support gives the Saudi monarchy the legitimacy to rule over a nation holding Islam's holiest sites.

"Nayef is more religious, and is closer to the Saudi groups who are very critical of the king's decisions regarding women and other steps he's taken to balance out the rigid religious practices in society," said Ali Fakhro, a political analyst and commentator in Bahrain.

But it remains doubtful that Nayef — if ever made king — would outright annul Abdullah's reforms, which include the establishment of a coed university where both genders can mix. More likely, Nayef would put any further changes on hold, said Abdulkhaleq Abdulla, a political affairs professor at Emirates University.

"It's not good news for Saudis or for the region," he said. "(Nayef) is the security guy. He is the mukhabarat (secret police) guy. He is the internal affairs guy."

Although it's not certain that Nayef will be selected to succeed Sultan, the signs point clearly in that direction.

After Sultan fell ill two years ago, Nayef was named second deputy prime minister, traditionally the post right behind the crown prince. For the first time, however, the mechanism of picking the next No. 2 in the royal succession is not entirely clear.

Traditionally, the king names his successor. But this time it is possible that Abdullah will put the decision to the Allegiance Council, a 33-member body composed of his brothers and cousins. Abdullah created the council as part of his reforms and gave it a mandate to choose the heir.

Abdullah formed the council in order to modernize the process and give a wider voice. When it was created, it was decided that the council would choose the heir for the first time when Sultan rose to the throne, and his crown prince would need to be named. But it was not specified whether it would be used if Sultan died before the king.

The choice of whether to convene the council now will likely be made by the 87-year-old Abdullah, who is currently recovering from his third operation to treat back problems in less than a year.

"It is with deep sorrow and grief that the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah mourns the loss of his brother and Crown Prince, His Royal Highness Prince Sultan," the palace said in a statement announcing Sultan's death.

The announcement did not elaborate on his illness. According to a leaked U.S. diplomatic cable from January 2010, Sultan had been receiving treatment for colon cancer since 2009.

Sultan was the kingdom's defense minister in 1990 when U.S. forces deployed in Saudi Arabia to defend it against Iraqi forces that had overrun Kuwait. His son, Prince Khaled, served as the top Arab commander in the 1991 operation Desert Storm, in which U.S.-led troops drove the Iraqis out of Kuwait.

As defense minister, Sultan closed multibillion-dollar deals to establish the modern Saudi armed forces, including land, air, naval and air defense forces. On more than one occasion, the deals implicated several of his sons in corruption scandals — charges they have denied.

Sultan is survived by 32 children from multiple wives. They include Bandar, the former ambassador to the United States who now heads the National Security Council, and Khaled, Sultan's assistant in the Defense Ministry.

"The crown prince was a strong leader and a good friend to the United States over many years as well as a tireless champion for his country. He will be missed," said U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during a visit to Tajikistan. "Our relationship with Saudi Arabia is strong and enduring and we will look forward to working with the leadership for many years to come."

Britain's foreign secretary, William Hague, said Sultan served his country with "great dignity and dedication."

Saudi Arabia has been ruled since 1953 by the sons of its founder, King Abdul-Aziz, who had more than 40 sons by multiple wives. Sultan was part of the aging second generation of Abdul-Aziz's sons, including Nayef, the full brother of the late King Fahd, who died in 2005.

While Nayef has taken only minor roles in foreign affairs, he has been outspoken in one of Saudi Arabia's chief regional concerns: ambitions by rival Iran to expand its influence in the Middle East.

Earlier this year, he blamed the Shiite power for encouraging protests among Saudi Arabia's minority Shiites.

Nayef also was involved in the kingdom's decision in March to send military forces into neighboring Bahrain to help crush pro-reform demonstrations led by tiny island nation's majority Shiites against its Sunni rulers — which Gulf Arab leaders accuse of having ties to Iran.

With Yemen, he has called for Saudi Arabia to take a harder line with embattled President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who was treated in Saudi Arabia after surviving a blast in June and later returned to Yemen.

In August, Nayef accepted undisclosed libel damages from Britain's newspaper The Independent over an article which accused him of ordering police chiefs to shoot and kill unarmed demonstrators in Saudi Arabia.

Nayef has chaired Cabinet meetings in place of Abdullah and Sultan. He also draws considerable prestige from being among the sons of Abdul-Aziz's most prominent wife, known as the Sudeiri Seven. Abdullah's predecessor Fahd also was among the seven.

"Nayef's closer links to the Wahhabi establishment may see a reversal of some recent reforms, especially regarding women," said Christopher Davidson, a lecturer at Britain's Durham University and an expert on Gulf affairs. "But more likely business as usual, I think, with no further major reforms."

Source:

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Saudi Crown Prince Sultan dies, focus on Prince Nayef

(Reuters) - Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Sultan has died, the royal court said on Saturday, and Interior Minister and reputed conservative Prince Nayef was expected to become the new heir to the throne in the world's biggest oil exporter.

Sultan, whose age was officially given as 80 and who died in New York of colon cancer early on Saturday Saudi time, had been a central figure in Saudi decision-making since becoming defense minister in 1962 and was made crown prince in 2005.

Saudi analysts predicted an orderly transition at a time when much of the Middle East is in turmoil after mass uprisings against autocratic leaders by citizens demanding democracy.

Saudi King Abdullah reacted to the "Arab Spring" by ordering spending of $130 billion on social benefits, housing and jobs, but he and his new crown prince face challenges from al Qaeda militants, a restless Shi'ite minority and civil conflict in neighboring Yemen.

Saudi Arabia is also locked in a confrontation with Shi'ite Muslim power Iran, accused by the United States of plotting to kill the kingdom's ambassador to Washington.

Earlier this month, the Saudi Interior Ministry accused an unnamed foreign power, widely assumed to mean Iran, of instigating protests by the Saudi Shi'ite minority in which 14 people, including 11 security officers, were injured.

Sultan's health had declined in recent years and he spent long periods outside the kingdom for medical treatment. A 2009 U.S. diplomatic cable released by WikiLeaks described him as "for all intents and purposes incapacitated."

King Abdullah is now likely to summon the untested Allegiance Council of the ruling al-Saud family, set up in 2006 to make the succession process more transparent, to approve his preferred heir. In the past, the succession was decided in secret by the king and a coterie of powerful princes.

Most analysts believe the new crown prince will be Nayef, who was appointed second deputy prime minister in 2009, a position usually given to the man who is third-in-line to rule.

"The problem is (the Allegiance Council) is a secret organization that consists of members of the royal family and Saudi society has no say," said Madawi al-Rashid, author of A History of Saudi Arabia and critic of the ruling family. "Some sections of Saudi Arabia are worried. Nayef is known for security solutions. His rhetoric always invokes the sword."

Nayef has been interior minister since 1975 and has managed the kingdom's day-to-day affairs during the absences of both the king and crown prince.

He has gained a reputation as being more conservative than either King Abdullah or Sultan, with close ties to the country's powerful Wahhabi clergy. But as king he might follow a more moderate line in keeping with the al-Saud tradition of governing by consensus, analysts say.

"The succession will be orderly," said Asaad al-Shamlan, a political science professor in Riyadh. "The point of reference will be the ruling of the Allegiance Council. It seems to me most likely Nayef will be chosen. If he becomes crown prince, I don't expect much immediate change."

"Things are in order, thanks to the wise leadership represented in King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz," Prince Talal bin Abdulaziz, a brother of both Abdullah and Sultan and member of the Allegiance Council, told reporters.

ALLEGIANCE COUNCIL

When the Allegiance Council convenes, the 34 branches of the ruling family born to the kingdom's founder King Abdulaziz Ibn Saud will each have a vote to confirm the king's nominee for crown prince or appoint their own candidate.

Saudi television broke its normal schedule early on Saturday to broadcast Koranic verses and footage of pilgrims circling the Kaaba in Mecca, Islam's holiest site, before announcing the crown prince's death.

"With deep sorrow and sadness the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz mourns the death of his brother and his Crown Prince Sultan... who died at dawn this morning Saturday outside the kingdom following an illness," said a Saudi royal court statement carried on official media.

The Saudi stock market was unaffected by the news, and the TASI all-share index closed nearly half a percent up. Shops, schools and universities were open as normal in Riyadh.

Funeral services for Sultan, who died on Friday New York time, will be held on Tuesday in Riyadh. An official at the Saudi embassy in Washington confirmed that Prince Sultan had died in New York but declined to give further details.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton expressed her condolences over the death, saying U.S.-Saudi ties are strong.

"The Crown Prince was a strong leader and a good friend to the United States over many years, as well as a tireless champion for his country," Clinton said during a visit to Tajikistan, in the first official U.S. comment on his death.

"Our relationship with Saudi Arabia is strong and enduring and we will look forward to working with the (Saudi) leadership for many years to come," she told a news conference.

Kuwait, Jordan, Morocco, Qatar, Turkey and Oman sent messages of condolence.

King Abdullah, who is in his late 80s, underwent back surgery earlier this month but has been pictured since then in apparently good health.

"The stability of Saudi Arabia is more important than ever," said Turad al-Amri, a political analyst in Saudi Arabia. "All the countries around it are crumbling. The balance of power is changing in the Middle East."

Abdullah has gained a reputation as a cautious reformer since becoming de facto regent of the conservative Islamic country in 1995 and as king since 2005.

He was absent for three months in late 2010 and early 2011 following treatment for a herniated disc that caused blood to accumulate around his spine.

Unlike European monarchies, the line of succession does not move from father to eldest son, but down a line of brothers born to the kingdom's founder Ibn Saud, who died in 1953.

Sultan's death also means King Abdullah will have to select new defense and aviation ministers, key posts in a country that spends billions of dollars on weapons procurement.

Prince Khaled bin Sultan, the son of the late crown prince, has been deputy defense minister since 2001 and is one candidate to replace his father as minister.

"There traditionally has been a way of balancing the power relationships within the family that are important," said Robert Jordan, U.S. ambassador to Riyadh from 2001-03. "So I don't think we should automatically assume that Khaled bin Sultan will become the defense minister, although he has much experience and his father was in place for many years."

Source: Reuters

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Tumblr blocked in Saudi Arabia

Tumblr can’t seem to catch a break when it comes to Internet censorship. We already know that Tumblr has been incorrectly flagged for pornographic content by Canadian security software Netsweep, and as a consequence, was blocked for some time in Kuwait, Qatar, UAE and Yemen.

It would seem that Saudi Arabia is the latest country to deem Tumblr blogs inappropriate for public consumption. Reports are emerging on Twitter, and ironically on Tumblr as well, that Saudi residents can no longer access the blogging platform.

Some reports state that everything is accessible except the actual dashboard, meaning you can browse Tumblr blogs anyway, but can’t produce content, while more recent reports on Twitter state that you can’t access the Tumblr dashboard or blogs, but can still access profiles.

This is not the first hit that Tumblr has taken in Saudi Arabia. A few months earlier, the search function on Tumblr was disabled, while other sites such as Amnesty International, Twitter, Facebook and YouTube have all been blocked at one time or another, with the royal kingdom’s attempt to regulate Internet use throughout the country.

Whether or not this is a temporary block or not is something that remains to be seen.

Source: The Next Web

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Public Executions in Saudi Arabia Spark Fury in Bangladesh

Human rights activists have condemned the public execution of eight Bangladeshi migrant workers in Saudi Arabia.

According to reports, the eight men were beheaded in Riyadh on Friday following conviction for the alleged killing of an Egyptian national in April 2007. Three other Bangladeshis who were also convicted of murder, were sentence to prison terms and flogging.

Ain O Salish Kendra (ASK), a Bangladeshi legal aid and human rights organization, said that while the executions were carried out under Saudi laws, such a punishment will cause grave suffering to the families of the condemned men. ASK also pointed out that foreign workers in Saudi Arabia often don’t understand the nuances of Saudi law, do not understand the Arabic language, and frequently fail to secure effective legal representation.

ASK has urged the Bangladeshi government in Dhaka to provide legal assistance to countrymen who find themselves in serious trouble in foreign countries.

According to Sultana Kamal, executive director of ASK in Dhaka, the Bangladeshi government did not even inform the families of the executed men – they learned of it through newspaper reports.

“They [migrants] are poor people they go there [Saudi Arabia] for economic reasons and we are not sure whether they were given enough opportunity to defend themselves and why weren't the families informed?,” she told Radio Australia.

However, it is unlikely that Bangladeshi officials will do much to pressure the Saudis – there are an estimated 2 million Bangladeshi workers in Saudi Arabia and their cash remittances home are important to the impoverished nation’s economy.

Similarly, the London-based human rights organization Amnesty International is also outraged by the mass beheading, citing that since the end of the Holy month of Ramadan, executions have resumed in Saudi Arabia at an alarming rate.

Amnesty stated that the Saudis have now executed 58 people this year, more than double the rate for all of last year.

“Court proceedings in Saudi Arabia fall far short of international standards for fair trial and news of these recent multiple executions [are] deeply disturbing,” said Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui, Amnesty’s Deputy Director for Middle East and North Africa.

“The Saudi authorities appear to have increased the number of executions in recent months, a move that puts the country at odds with the worldwide trend against the death penalty. The [Saudi] government must establish an immediate moratorium on executions in the Kingdom and commute all death sentences, with a view to abolishing the death penalty completely.”

Amnesty also pointed out that many of those who are executed in Saudi Arabia are foreign workers from poor countries who can neither afford lawyers, nor even understand the Kingdom’s court system.

“Defendants often have no defense lawyer and are unable to follow court proceedings in Arabic,” Amnesty stated. “They are also rarely allowed formal representation by a lawyer, and in many cases are not informed of the progress of legal proceedings against them. They, and many of the Saudi Arabians who are executed, also have no access to influential figures such as government authorities or heads of tribes, nor to money, both crucial factors in paying blood money or securing a pardon in murder cases.”

Meanwhile, the Saudi ambassador to Bangladesh, Abdullah. N. Al Bussairy, told the Daily Star newspaper of Bangladesh, insisted that his government tried to help Dhaka officials pay blood money to the family of the murdered man in Egypt (whose forgiveness might have spared the convicted men, under Sharia law).

However, the intervention didn't succeed.

Source: International Business Times

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HC issues rule on govt over Bangladeshis’ execution in KSA

Dhaka, Oct 12 (UNB) -The High Court has asked the government to form a high-powered committee to investigate the role of officials serving in the Bangladesh mission in Saudi Arabia whether they had taken effective steps to save the lives of the eight executed migrant workers.

Passing the interim order upon a public interest litigation (PIL) writ petition filed by Human Rights and Peace for Bangladesh (HRPB), an HC division bench comprising Justice Farid Ahmed and Justice Sheikh Hassan Arif asked the Secretaries to the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Welfare and Overseas Employment to submit a report on compliance in eight weeks.

On October 7, Saudi Arabia carried out their court order beheading in public the eight Bangladeshis for their involvement in a robbery and subsequent murder of an Egyptian security guard in Riyadh in 2007, according to press reports.

It also asked the Bangladesh Ambassador in Saudi Arabia to submit within four weeks a detailed report on the steps taken by the mission to save the lives of the executed Bangladeshis.

Despite government attorney’s objection, the High Court issued rule upon the government to explain why its ‘inaction’ to provide adequate support and legal assistance to save the lives of eight Bangladeshis beheaded on charges of robbery and murder should not be declared

illegal.

Besides, the HC asked the government to explain why direction should not be given to provide proper and legal assistance in all cases to the Bangladeshi citizens living abroad as and when required.

Opposing the petition, Deputy Attorney General Motahar Hossain Saju told the court that lawyers fought a legal battle for them at all levels. Bangladesh’s foreign and expatriates’ welfare ministries had repeatedly appealed to the Saudi authorities for clemency, the attorney said, adding that even President Zillur Rahman solicited pardon for the convicts from the Saudi king.

Advocate Manzill Murshid appeared for the HRPB.

Source: UNB

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U.N. rights office "distressed" by Saudi executions

GENEVA (Reuters) - The United Nations on Tuesday said it was "deeply distressed" by Saudi Arabia's public execution of 10 men, including eight Bangladeshi migrants, and called on the kingdom to stop using the death penalty.

Saudi Arabia said it executed eight Bangladesh nationals on Friday for their part in an armed robbery in which an Egyptian security guard was killed, the state news agency reported.

The U.N. said two Saudi nationals were also executed on the same day for other crimes.

"For eight people to be executed for one murder is a lot of people and that raises questions itself. Ten were executed on the same day, eight of them migrant workers," Rupert Colville, spokesman for the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay, told Reuters.

"The Bangladeshis were beheaded by sword in public."

The U.N. human rights office said it was trying to get more information on the Bangladeshi case, but confirmed that the men had lawyers and contact with their embassy.

"In terms of the whole case, whether it was fairly conducted, we don't really have enough information to make a comment," Colville told journalists earlier.

There were general concerns over whether foreigners received clear interpretation of proceedings in Saudi courts, he said.

Out of at least 58 people believed to have been executed in the OPEC oil giant this year, 20 were migrant workers, he added.

About 140 of the 193 member U.N. states are believed to have abolished the death penalty or introduced a moratorium on executions, he said.

"We call on the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to join these states and establish a moratorium on the use of the death penalty," he said.

(Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay; Editing by Andrew Heavens)

Source: Reuters

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Saudi government's efforts to save the eight Bangladeshi

The Saudi ambassador to Bangladesh said on Monday his government extended full support to Bangladesh government in pursuing to stop the execution of eight Bangladeshi workers in the country.

“But the efforts did not work,” Dr Abdullah.N. Al Bussairy said at a press briefing at his residence in the capital.

Despite Bangladesh's repeated pleas for clemency, Saudi Arabia on Friday executed the eight Bangladeshi workers for their involvement in a robbery and subsequent murder of an Egyptian security guard in Riyadh in 2007.

The Saudi government assisted Bangladesh government’s effort to pay blood money to the family of the Egyptian national, whose killing earned the eight Bangladeshis the capital punishment, but the victim’s family did not agree to the proposal, the Saudi ambassador told the press conference Monday.

A Saudi citizen was beheaded the same day for killing an Afghan national, the ambassador said, adding that the Saudi government moved for clemency to its citizen in exchange of blood money but also failed in convincing the victim’s family.

He also said Bangladesh government was instrumental to have its nationals cleared of the charge over four years when the trial was in progress.

The Bangladeshi migrant workers, who were beheaded in public in the Saudi capital, were Suman Mia from Kishoreganj, Mohammad Suman, Mamun Abdul Mannan, Masud Shamsul Haque and Shafiqul Islam from Tangail, Faruk Jamal from Comilla, Abul Hossain and Matiar Rahman from Faridpur.

Three other Bangladeshis -- Abdus Salam, Masud Rana, Alam -- were sentenced by the kingdom's highest court to imprisonment for different terms and flogging for their involvement in the incident, Bangladesh embassy officials in Riyadh told The Daily Star.

The 11 Bangladeshi workers killed Egyptian security guard Saeed Mohammed Abdulkhaleq while stealing electric cables from a warehouse in Riyadh on April 22, 2007, as documented in case statements.

Source: The Daily Star

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Saudi Arabia - beheading in the 21st century.

Saudi Arabia uses public beheading as the punishment for murder, rape, drug trafficking, sodomy, armed robbery, apostasy and certain other offences.  2007 was the record year for executions with 153 men and three women executed. Forty five men and two women were beheaded in 2002, a further 52 men and 1 woman in 2003 and 35 men and a woman in 2004.  Executions rose in 2005 with 88 men and two women being beheaded and then reduced to 35 men and four women in 2006.  102 people were executed in Saudi Arabia during 2008 but it is thought that two of these were by shooting in Asir Province.  67 people were beheaded in 2009, including two women.  The execution rate fell markedly in 2010 with 26 men being beheaded.

The condemned of both sexes are typically given tranquillisers and then taken by police van to a public square or a car park after midday prayers. Their eyes are covered and they are blindfolded. The police clear the square of traffic and a sheet of plastic sheet about 16 feet square is laid out on the ground.

Dressed in either a white robe or their own clothes, barefoot, with shackled feet and hands cuffed behind their back, the prisoner is led by a police officer to the centre of the sheet where they are made to kneel facing Mecca. An Interior Ministry official reads out the prisoner's name and crime to the crowd.

Saudi Arabia uses a traditional Arab scimitar which is 1100-1200 mm long. The executioner is handed the sword by a policeman and raises the gleaming scimitar, often swinging it two or three times in the air to warm up his arm muscles, before approaching the prisoner from behind and jabbing him in the back with the tip of the blade, causing the person to raise their head. (see photo) Then with a single swing of the sword the prisoner is decapitated.

Normally it takes just one swing of the sword to sever the head, often sending it flying some two or three feet. Paramedics bring the head to a doctor, who uses a gloved hand to stop the fountain of blood spurting from the neck. The doctor sews the head back on, and the body is wrapped in the blue plastic sheet and taken away in an ambulance. Burial takes place in an unmarked grave in the prison cemetery.

Beheadings of women did not start until the early 1990’s, previously they were shot.  Forty seven women have been publicly beheaded up to the end of 2010.  

Most executions take place in the three major cities of Riyadh, Jeddah and Dahran. Saudi executioners take great pride in their work and the post tends to be handed down from one generation to the next. 

Source: Capital Punishment UK

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Eight Bangladeshi men have been executed in the Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh (The Real History)

Eight Bangladeshi men have been executed in the Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh, last Friday after the Asar Prayer.

Who ever want to know more about this type of brutal death penalty, they can search in YouTube, what has been captured by Mobile camera. In this Videos you will see that a lot of khaki uniformed police is protecting that area. It looks like The circus is surrounded by a public bank. Who will behead his foot and hand placement on the knees of the flame. The head Lowered into the front side.Then sword in handed, Saudi alakhallaha dressed Hangman's comes Ahead of the executioner's. As like as the animal what is sacrificed for Allah, they watch the executes from here and there & and they blocks excutes hands-legs. Generally 2 hangman's be there. After that they cut executes head by one shot by loudly shouting "Allahu Akbaar". 

How much brutality is in Death Penalty at Saudi Arabia - The Real Video (18+ only!)

Then an Ambulance comes forward, which was next to waiting. Then they borrow the body in a streature. One of them put the head and keeps it in a side like a football. And then the people who watched, will arrive at home and will also describe the incident with happiness when they are taking there food. 

It is a regular activity of Saudia Arabia, thats why it do not effect over anyone. Rather the Saudi policy determinant shows that execute (behead) infront of the people what is called "Act of ALLAH" will make people carefull. It reduces crime in society.Many of the people thinks that it is not brutality, but rather it is an effective way to reduce crime in the society. Okay, I heard everything and I Understood everything. But it will not be realized, more than 14 hundred years ago, this "act of God," Why are not yet extinct in Saudi society, from crime to murder like this way? 

2007 was the record year for executions with 153 men and three women executed. Forty five men and two women were beheaded in 2002, a further 52 men and 1 woman in 2003 and 35 men and a woman in 2004. Executions rose in 2005 with 88 men and two women being beheaded and then reduced to 35 men and four women in 2006.  102 people were executed in Saudi Arabia during 2008 but it is thought that two of these were by shooting in Asir Province.  67 people were beheaded in 2009, including two women.  The execution rate fell markedly in 2010 with 26 men being beheaded. Do you think 14 hundred years was not enough for this type of crime to society can be abolished?

Who ever is supporting this legal argument and finding big logics of it, I am requesting those to think it again.

                      ............... to be continue.............

By Admin

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How much brutality is in Death Penalty at Saudi Arabia - The Real Video (18+ only!)

It's an 18+ Video!

For Under 18 & Heart Patient, It will be better if you do not watch!

Source: Internet

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Saudi Arabia executes eight Bangladeshi nationals

Watch: How much brutality is in Death Penalty at Saudi Arabia - The Real Video (18+ only!)

Eight Bangladeshi men have been executed in the Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh on Friday.

The migrant workers, who were beheaded in public, were sentenced to death for the alleged murder of an Egyptian man in April 2007.

Since the end of the Holy month of Ramadan, executions have resumed in Saudi Arabia at an alarming rate.

“Court proceedings in Saudi Arabia fall far short of international standards for fair trial and news of these recent multiple executions is deeply disturbing,” said Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for Middle East and North Africa.

Executions have resumed in Saudi Arabia at an alarming rate since Ramadan.

© Amnesty International

“The Saudi authorities appear to have increased the number of executions in recent months, a move that puts the country at odds with the worldwide trend against the death penalty.”

“The government must establish an immediate moratorium on executions in the Kingdom and commute all death sentences, with a view to abolishing the death penalty completely,” she added.

The beheadings bring the number of executions in Saudi Arabia this year to at least 58, more than double than the 2010 figures. Twenty of those executed in 2011 were foreign nationals.

The Bangladeshi men who were executed are Ma'mun Abdul Mannan, Faruq Jamal, Sumon Miah, Mohammed Sumon, Shafiq al-Islam, Mas'ud Shamsul Haque, Abu al-Hussain Ahmed, Mutir al-Rahman.

According to reports, the Egyptian man was killed during a clash between the Bangladeshi workers and a group of men who allegedly were stealing electric cable from a building complex where the Bangladeshis worked.

Three other Bangladeshis were sentenced to prison terms and flogging.

Two other Saudi nationals were executed in the northern city of Tabuk, bringing the total number of executions on Friday to ten.

Many of those executed in Saudi Arabia in recent years have been foreign nationals, mostly migrant workers from poor and developing countries.

Defendants often have no defence lawyer and are unable to follow court proceedings in Arabic. They are also rarely allowed formal representation by a lawyer, and in many cases are not informed of the progress of legal proceedings against them.

They, and many of the Saudi Arabians who are executed, also have no access to influential figures such as government authorities or heads of tribes, nor to money, both crucial factors in paying blood money or securing a pardon in murder cases.

Saudi Arabia applies the death penalty for a wide range of offences.

They may be convicted solely on the basis of confessions obtained under duress or deception.

At least 158 people, including 76 foreign nationals, were executed by the Saudi Arabian authorities in 2007. In 2008 some 102 people, including almost 40 foreign nationals, were executed.

In 2009, at least 69 people are known to have been executed, including 19 foreign nationals and in 2010, at least 27 people were executed including six foreign nationals.

Source: Amnesty International

Watch: How much brutality is in Death Penalty at Saudi Arabia - The Real Video (18+ only!)

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8 Bangladeshi killed in Saudi Arabia

Watch: How much brutality is in Death Penalty at Saudi Arabia - The Real Video (18+ only!)

The Saudi authorities executed eight Bangladeshi workers on Friday in the country’s capital Riyadh for their involvement in killing an Egyptian man.The migrant workers, who were beheaded in public, were sentenced to death for the murder of the man in April 2007, according to the Amnesty International.

Photo: Amnesty International

The executed are: Ma'mun Abdul Mannan, Faruq Jamal, Sumon Miah, Mohammed Sumon, Shafiq al-Islam, Mas'ud Shamsul Haque, Abu al-Hussain Ahmed and Mutir al-Rahman.

Details of executed Bangladeshis could not be learnt immediately.

According to a news posted on the AI website, the Egyptian man was killed during a clash between the Bangladeshi workers and a group of men who allegedly were stealing electric cable from a building complex where the Bangladeshis used to work.

Three other Bangladeshis were sentenced to prison terms and flogging for the murder.

Executions have resumed in Saudi Arabia at an alarming rate since the end of the Holy month of Ramadan, said the AI.

“Court proceedings in Saudi Arabia fall far short of international standards for fair trial and news of these recent multiple executions are deeply disturbing,” said Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for Middle East and North Africa.

“The Saudi authorities appear to have increased the number of executions in recent months, a move that puts the country at odds with the worldwide trend against the death penalty.”

“The government must establish an immediate moratorium on executions in the Kingdom and commute all death sentences, with a view to abolishing the death penalty completely,” she added.

Friday's beheading of the Bangladeshi nationals brings the number of executions in Saudi Arabia this year to at least 58, more than double than the 2010 figures. Twenty of those executed in 2011 were foreign nationals, the AI report said.Many of those executed in Saudi Arabia in recent years have been foreign nationals, mostly migrant workers from poor and developing countries.Defendants often have no defence lawyer and are unable to follow court proceedings in Arabic.

They are also rarely allowed formal representation by a lawyer, and in many cases are not informed of the progress of legal proceedings against them.They, and many of the Saudi Arabians who are executed, also have no access to influential figures such as government authorities or heads of tribes, nor to money, both crucial factors in paying blood money or securing a pardon in murder cases.Saudi Arabia applies the death penalty for a wide range of offences.They may be convicted solely on the basis of confessions obtained under duress or deception.This News is very negative for the Bangladeshi.

Watch: How much brutality is in Death Penalty at Saudi Arabia - The Real Video (18+ only!)

Source: Internet

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