Saudi Arabia: Jordanian Man At Imminent Risk Of Execution
The authorities have recently resumed a bloody spree in executions of individuals convicted for alleged drug-related offences. Since 10 November 2022, the authorities have executed 20 individuals for alleged drug offences, 60% of whom are foreign nationals, including from Syria, Jordan, Nigeria and Pakistan. Since the beginning of 2022, the Saudi authorities have carried out 148 executions.
In January 2021, the Saudi Human Rights Commission stated that the country has enforced a moratorium on drug-related offences, and that “the Kingdom and its justice system are focusing more on rehabilitation and prevention.” Following this announcement, Saudi Arabia did not carry out any executions for drug-related offences until November 2022Meanwhile, there was no official change to Saudi laws, including the Saudi Drugs and Narcotics Control Law which provides that drug smuggling or related crimes are punishable by death under ta’zir (the discretion of the judge). In June 2021, King Salman issued royal directives to the General Directorate of Prisons, ordering them to implement pardons procedures for some detainees held for drug offences. Although it was unclear whether this order would apply to those on death row, some detainees held within his facility were released. During his detention, Hussein Abo al-Kheir, who is a father of eight and the breadwinner of his family, received conflicting information about the status of his case. According to his family, they were informed by Abo al-Kheir in June 2021 that prison officials told him that his death sentence had been suspended and the sentence was being reviewed by the Ministry of Interior in light of the aforementioned royal directives. Despite the release of his fellow prisoners on death row at the time, Abo al-Kheir remained in detention.
In the absence of transparent information around judicial processes in Saudi Arabia, particularly in death penalty cases, families only find out about the fate of their loved ones through the media. Amnesty International’s assessment of the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the conviction and death sentence of Hussein Abo al-Kheir indicates he will be at imminent risk of execution as soon as the King ratifies it, which could be at any moment, since families are not informed when the King ratifies death sentences at the final stage.