Human Rights Groups Condemn Saudi Arabia Execution of Individual for Crimes Committed as Minor

Human Rights Groups Condemn Saudi Arabia Execution of Individual for Crimes Committed as Minor
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Human rights organizations, including Amnesty International and the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), have condemned Saudi Arabia’s execution of Jalal Labbad, a member of the country’s Shi’a minority. Labbad was executed for crimes he was accused of committing when he was around 17 years old.

According to a JURIST news report and an Amnesty International statement, Labbad was arrested in 2017 and later sentenced to death in 2022. He was allegedly subjected to torture while in detention and denied access to legal counsel. The execution contradicts previous assurances by the Saudi Human Rights Commission that the death penalty for crimes committed by minors had been “completely abolished” for ta’zir crimes (crimes for which a penalty is not prescribed in the Quran or Hadith).

Amnesty International has stated that the use of the death penalty for crimes committed by individuals under 18 is prohibited under international law, including the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The organizations also expressed concern for other individuals on death row in Saudi Arabia who were sentenced for crimes allegedly committed while they were minors.