Saudi beheading takes total to 68

A Saudi was beheaded today after he was convicted of fatally stabbing another man after an argument.

Yousef bin Shahaz al-Mutairi had been found guilty of murdering Sami bin Turki al-Subaei with a knife, an Interior Ministry statement said.

He was executed in the eastern province of Hafer al-Baten.

So far this year, at least 68 people have been executed in Saudi Arabia.

Last year, 35 people were executed in the kingdom and 52 in 2003.

Saudi Arabia follows a strict interpretation of Islam under which people convicted of murder, drug trafficking, rape and armed robbery can be executed.