Seven Egyptians on death row in Saudi Arabia are among a surging number of foreign nationals facing the death sentence on non-lethal drugs charges, reports Middle East Eye.
Saudi Arabia has executed at least 214 people so far this year: 140 for drug related offences, and 116 foreign nationals.
This is despite the fact that Saudi Arabian authorities have repeatedly assured that the death penalty will only be applied to the most serious crimes.
“Pulled from their cells daily, fear is everywhere as Egyptians, Somalis and more agonise over who will be next,” Reprieve’s head of death penalty for the MENA region Jeed Basyouni told Middle East Eye.
“In the failed global war on drugs we see the same pattern repeating itself – authorities respond to concerns about drug use by killing poor and marginalised groups. To make matters worse, they rarely receive basic due process rights such as legal representation or interpreters during their trials.”