On Wednesday, Kuwait held a mass execution. Seven people were hanged including a Royal Prince. This is the first execution to include a Royal since October of last year when Saudi Arabia executed a member of the Saudi Royal Family convicted of murder.
This is the first execution in the oil emirate in several years. Kuwait’s ruler, Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah, authorised the executions of the six convicted of murder and the one person who was tried and convicted of kidnapping, rape, and theft. The hangings of a Bangladeshi, a Filipina, an Ethiopian, two Kuwaitis and two Egyptians were carried out in the morning in the country’s central prison.
The Royal in question was Faisal Abdullah Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, who killed his nephew Basil Al-Sabah seven years ago. Oil emirates rarely hold executions, but they do occur, according to The Associated Press. Amnesty International opposes executions. In a statement released by the organisation, Amnesty official Samah Hadid said: “The mass execution “is a shocking and deeply regrettable step backward for Kuwait. By choosing to resume executions now, the Kuwaiti authorities have displayed a wanton disregard for the right to life and signalled a willingness to weaken human rights standards.”
In the Philippines, Department of Foreign Affairs spokesman Charles Jose identified the Filipina hanged as Jakatia Pawa, who was convicted of killing her employer’s daughter. She called her brother to inform him of her impending execution, asking him to take care of her two children.
Ernesto Abella, the spokesman for Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte, said in a statement to The Associated Press that the authorities utilised “all efforts to preserve her life, including diplomatic means and appeals for compassion.”
“Execution, however, could no longer be forestalled under Kuwaiti laws. We pray for her and her bereaved family.”
1 down, and quite a few to go…remember Ekaterinberg