Grisly killing of child bares brutal nature of Wahhabism

The killing of a six-year-old boy in broad daylight in Saudi Arabia has generated a wave of shock and revulsion and drawn attention to the brutal nature of Wahhabi school of thought which governs the kingdom. 

The killing of a six-year-old boy in broad daylight in Saudi Arabia has generated a wave of shock and revulsion and drawn attention to the brutal nature of Wahhabi school of thought which governs the kingdom. 

The child, identified as Zakariya Bader al-Jabir, was brutally murdered last week by a man – described in some reports as a taxi driver-  in front of his screaming mother in the holy city of Medina.

The killer repeatedly stabbed Zakariya in the neck with a piece of broken glass until he was beheaded, witness accounts of the gruesome killing said. 

The child and his mother were reportedly attacked by the apparently lone assailant while they were on their way to visit the shrine of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him, and his pure progeny).

Shia Rights Watch, a Washington-based advocacy group, said on Saturday the incident was “a result of ongoing violations against and lack of protection of the Shia population by Saudi authorities.”

“Saudi Shia have been under military crackdown by their government and many Shia are in prisons and on death row,” it said. 

According to reports, Saudi officials were quick to state that the killer suffered from psychological problems.