Saudi man beheaded for 'witchcraft and sorcery'

A Saudi Arabian man has been beheaded in the Kingdom for after being convicted of practising witchcraft and sorcery. The execution was the third in Saudi in less than a year for charges relating to sorcery.

The Independent reported Muree bin Ali bin Issa al-Asiri was "found in possession of books and talismans from which he learnt to harm God's worshippers." The Saudi Interior Ministry said that in addition to practising witchcraft and sorcery al-Asiri had also admitted to committing adultery with two women. In September 2011 Digital Journal reported a Sudanese man was beheaded in the Kingdom after being found guilty of witchcraft and sorcery which are illegal under Sharia law. Abdul Hamid bin Hussein Mostafa al-Fakki was a migrant worker from Sudan who was entrapped by an agent of the Mutawa’een, Saudi's religious police. His execution was followed by the beheading of a Saudi woman in December 2011, also convicted on charges of sorcery and witchcraft. The BBC reported the execution of Amina bint Abdul Halim bin Salem Nasser. Human rights organizations continue to criticise the number of executions in Saudi Arabia. Amnesty International regards what the Saudis' interpret to be witchcraft as a peaceful expression of religion.