Saudi Arabia beheads 12th Pakistani in two months for heroin smuggling

Published December 25, 2014
In this photo, Saudi policemen stand guard. — AFP/File
In this photo, Saudi policemen stand guard. — AFP/File

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia on Thursday beheaded a Pakistani man for heroin smuggling, the twelfth person from Pakistan to be executed in the kingdom for drug trafficking since mid-October.

They are among 85 foreigners and Saudis put to death this year in the oil-rich kingdom, according to an estimated tally.

Saudi Arabia has one of the world's highest execution tolls.

The sentence against Ismail Khan Sayed was carried out in Eastern Province after his conviction for smuggling “a large amount” of heroin, the Interior Ministry said in a statement carried by the official Saudi Press Agency.

Read: Saudi Arabia beheads sixth Pakistani in three weeks

In addition to amphetamines and other drugs, Saudi authorities seized almost 18 kilogrammes of raw heroin during the Islamic calendar year that ended in October, according to the Interior Ministry.

The Gulf has become an increasingly important market for illicit drugs in recent years, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.

Rape, murder, apostasy and armed robbery are also punishable by death under Saudi Arabia's strict version of Islamic sharia law.

Read: Families mourn drug mules beheaded in Saudi Arabia

Opinion

Editorial

The Peca problem
Updated 15 Feb, 2025

The Peca problem

The fight for fundamental freedoms is not the media’s alone, but one that concerns every citizen.
Miners in danger
15 Feb, 2025

Miners in danger

YESTERDAY’S devastating terrorist attack in Harnai, which killed at least 11 coal miners and injured seven others,...
Solar panels scam
15 Feb, 2025

Solar panels scam

THE scam involving over-invoicing to the tune of more than Rs69bn in the import of solar panels raises many ...
Dangerous times
Updated 14 Feb, 2025

Dangerous times

Pakistan accounted for six journalist killings in 2024, of which three were deliberately murdered, according to the CPJ.
Difficult target
14 Feb, 2025

Difficult target

A ONE-two punch delivered by an unforeseen, sharp dip in inflation and an extremely slim base of taxpayers is...
Amazing show
14 Feb, 2025

Amazing show

PAKISTAN’S ability to turn it up at the flick of a switch remains uninhibited. The latest show came in...