Three Saudi men beheaded for murder

Three men were beheaded for separate murders today, the Saudi Interior Ministry said in a statement.

The executions were carried out in Riyadh and brought to 81 the number of people to have been beheaded in Saudi Arabia this year.

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

The ministry statement said one of the murderers, Suleiman bin Saad al-Shataan, had been found guilty of fatally shooting Abdel Aziz bin Ahmad al-Rasheed several times with an automatic rifle.

Separately, Hassan bin Mohammed al-Mashi al-Omari was found guilty of fatally shooting Mohammed bin Ali al-Obeisi al-Shihri several times with a hand gun after an argument. And Tamer bin Salem Dugheiman had been convicted of shooting to death Sultan bin Brak al-Dosari.

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

Executions are performed with a sword and in public as a deterrent.