SAUDI ARABIA: MAN BEHEADED AND CRUCIFIED

A man was beheaded and then crucified in the Saudi Arabian city of Hail. Muhammad Basheer bin Sa’oud al-Ramaly al-Shammari, 22, was convicted of kidnapping and raping four people in February 2009. His severed head was then sewn back on to his body, which was later hung from a pole in a public place, an act known in Saudi Arabia as a crucifixion.
Very little is known about Muhammad al-Shammari’s trial. Death sentences in Saudi Arabia are invariably imposed and carried out after secret unfair trials.
An appeal court upheld his death sentence and crucifixion in November, as did the Supreme Court subsequently.
Muhammad al-Shammari did not have access to a lawyer during his trial and there were reports that he may have suffered from a psychological disorder.
In Saudi Arabia, crucifixions take place after the beheading. The body, with the separated head sewn back on, is hung from or against a pole in public to act as a deterrent. The pole is sometimes shaped in the form of a cross, hence the use of the term “crucifixion”.