Syrian national executed in Saudi for smuggling drugs

A Syrian national has been executed in Saudi Arabia after being found guilty of smuggling drugs, the Ministry of Interior said on Wednesday.

Hamdi Akram Al-Samhan was executed in the Al-Qurayat governorate in Jouf region for smuggling a “large quantity of amphetamine pills” into the kingdom, the Saudi Press AGency (SPA) reported.

The ministry said that the man was convicted by the general court, with the death sentence endorsed by the appeal and supreme courts. A royal order was also issued to execute the sentence.

The ministry reiterated that the Saudi government is “keen on combating narcotics due to their great harm to individuals and the society”, and warned violators of punishment according to Sharia law.

The kingdom’s laws on drug smuggling are among the strictest in the world and it has carried out multiple executions of those convicted of the crime this year.

Some of those executed for smuggling this year include a Pakistani national, two Saudi nationals and a Palestinian national last month; two Saudis and three Yemenis executed in August and one Saudi, three Pakistanis and two Egyptians executed in April.