Saudi Arabia ends execution of minors

Riyadh: Saudi Arabia will no longer impose the death penalty on people who committed crimes while still minors, the country’s Human Rights Commission has said. The announcement on Sunday, citing a royal decree by King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, came two days after the country said it would ban flogging, the BBC reported.

In a statement, Awwad Alawwad, president of the state-backed Commission, said a royal decree had replaced executions in cases where crimes were committed by minors with a maximum penalty of 10 years in a juvenile detention centre.

“The decree helps us in establishing a more modern penal code,” the BBC quoted Alawwad as saying in the statement.

It was unclear when the decision, which was not immediately carried on state media, would come into effect. (IANS)

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