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The US government's commission for freedom of religion urged the Saudi Alliance to take action after the execution of 37 people, most of whom are Shiite Muslims.
The US Commission for World Religious Freedom, whose members are appointed by the president and legislators, but whose role is advisory, said that the US State Department "must stop giving a laissez-pbader "to Saudi Arabia.
On Friday, the commission issued a statement after information was revealed. The youngest of 37 men executed Tuesday was only 16 when he was charged.
The death sentence of Abdulkarim al-Hawaj had provoked a general outcry from the United Nations, which had urged the kingdom to overturn the judgment.
Hawaj would have "confessed" to his crimes After being beaten and tortured with electricity while his hands were chained above his head, the charity for human rights Reprieve said.
Another man executed on Tuesday was Mujtaba al-Sweikat, who was 17 when he took part in a pro-democracy rally in 2012.
According to Reprieve, al-Sweikat was "severely beaten all over his body, including the soles of his feet". He was sentenced "on the basis of confessions extracted under torture".
Tenzin Dorjee, the chairman of the commission, described the executions as "shocking" and urged the state department to put an end to the renunciations of the kingdom.
"The Saudi government's execution of Shia Muslim minorities on the basis of their religious identity and peaceful activism is not only shocking, but also contradicts the government's official discourse on modernization and improving conditions. of religious freedom.
"The State Department must stop giving a free pbad to the Saudi government, which for many years has punished many Saudi citizens and expatriate workers for exercising their basic right to freedom of religion or belief" , she said.
The State Department ranks Saudi Arabia among the "countries of particular concern" for violation of religious freedom, which would normally require Washington to take punitive measures such as economic sanctions.
However, successive state secretaries have issued annual waivers to punish Riyadh, citing national security interests.
Five executioner
Human rights groups said that almost all Saudi citizens beheaded Tuesday were Shiites, one of whose bodies was exposed to the public after his death.
US President Donald Trump has pledged to maintain close relations with Saudi Arabia, highlighting his major US arms purchases, his giant oil exports and his hostility to his American rival, the United States. # 39; Iran.
Trump did not comment on the executions, although the state department said he had urged "Saudi Arabia and all governments" to respect freedom of religion.
According to data published by the SPA, at least 100 people have been executed in Saudi Arabia since the beginning of the year.
The oil-rich state is one of the top five executioners in the world and, according to Amnesty International, has sentenced the death penalty to 149 people last year.
SOURCE:
Al Jazeera and news agencies
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