Saudi Arabia beheads one Indian, two Lankans for murder

The Indian, Mohammad Naushad, who was executed on Wednesday along with the two Sri Lankans, was a resident of Pattambi in Kerala, Indian consulate sources in Jeddah said.

"Although there has been no communication from their (the authorities) end, as is always the case, we have got confirmation from the Arabic media that he (Naushad) has been executed," they said.

Quoting a ministry statement, the official SPA agency reported that the Indian man and two Sri Lankans named Bandar Nikar and Halima Abdelkader have been executed in the case.
"This case goes back to November 2005 when a gang of 12 robbed a household and murdered a Saudi woman. The judgement was delivered in June 2007," a consulate source said.

According to him, seven others were convicted in the case and handed over five-year jail terms besides 500 lashes. "We tried our best to save the Indian national from execution. First, we jointly pursued the matter with Sri Lankan consulate but there was no breakthrough. Even appeals for pardon to Saudi authorities were rejected," he said.

Following the execution, bodies were not handed over to the family or the consulates and were buried by the authorities. In the southern region of Saudi Arabia, which comes under Jeddah consulate, this was the first execution this year.