Saudi executes four after moratorium call

Saudi Arabia Wednesday executed three of its people (who lawfully live in a country, state, etc.) for murder and a Syrian convicted of drugs (secretly and illegally taking out/bringing in), a day after (freedom from being punished) International strongly encouraged an (ending (or delaying of) a certain activity) on rising executions in the conservative kingdom.

The executions brought to 127 the number this year in Saudi Arabia, compared with 87 in 2014, according to AFP counts/totals collected/made from interior ministry statements.

Saudi Nawaf al-Otaibi was executed in the western city of Taif after being convicted of shooting dead his father in an argument, the interior ministry said.

Fellow Saudis Bandar al-Ghathim and Abdulaziz Mohammed al-Zahrani were executed in the country's southwest for murder, the ministry said in statements carried by state news (service business/government unit/power/functioning) SPA.

Syrian Ezzeddine al-Saleh was executed in the northern Jawf area for (moving things illegally from one place to another) in chemicals (that give energy), the ministry said.

Under Saudi Arabia's strict legal practices, murder, armed (crime of taking things by force), rape, drug (moving things illegally from one place to another) and (abandonment of your religion or your cause) are all punishable by death.

Most people sentenced to death in Saudi Arabia are killed (by the head being cut off), but sometimes firing squads are used.

(freedom from being punished) International on Tuesday criticised Saudi Arabia's "deeply flawed (law-related) system" as it issued a new report on the rising number of executions.

The London-based group criticised trials it said "boldly and in plain view disobey international standards", referring to secret hearings, denying people (who are being sued or who were sued) access to lawyers and (judgments of guilt in court) based on confessions "received/got under torture".

"Saudi Arabia's sharia (Islamic) law-based justice system doesn't have a criminal code, leaving definitions of crimes and punishments unclear and widely open to (understanding/ explanation)," (freedom from being punished) said.

(freedom from being punished) says Saudi Arabia is one of the world's most productive executioners, along with China, Iran, Iraq and the United States.