Juvenile offender beheaded in Saudi Arabia

A child offender has been beheaded in Saudi Arabia. The execution took place in the city of Taif on 21 July 2007.

Dhahian Rakan al-Sibai'i was sentenced to death for a murder he was accused of committing when he was just 15 years old. He was held in a juvenile facility until his 18th birthday and then moved to an adult prison. Dhahian appealed to the families of the victim to pardon him -- as allowed by Shari'a law -- but the outcome of his appeal is not known.

In May 2007, Amnesty International issued urgent appeals to the government of Saudi Arabia calling for a halt to his execution and urging commutation of the death sentence against him.

Dhahian Rakan al-Sibai'i's beheading is the latest in a recent spate of executions in Saudi Arabia. Since September 2006, at least 143 people have been executed in the Kingdom, which has one of the highest execution rates in the world.

Trial proceedings usually take place behind closed doors without adequate legal representation and invariably fall short of international fair trial standards. Children and adults are often convicted on the basis of "confessions" obtained under duress, including torture or other ill-treatment during incommunicado detention.

Amnesty International is outraged by the beheading of Dhahian Rakan al-Sibai'i and calls on King Abdullah to immediately halt all pending executions and take all necessary steps to stop the imposition of death sentences on juvenile offenders.