Head Count

Saudi Arabia executed 9 people in January. They were a mix of drug users and murderers. One was a woman. Rizana Nafeek, a Sri Lankan housemaid, was executed for the "murder" of a 4 month old baby left in her care. The prosecution claimed she killed the child after an argument with the childs mother. She claimed the child choked during feeding and the death was an accident. An autopsy to determine cause of death was not performed. Her case captured international attention and requests for amnesty. Unfortunately, cooler heads did not prevail and she was beheaded on Jan 9.

In related news, there is an obscure news story that Saudi Arabia commuted the sentences of 1200 death row inmates if they would fight against the Assad regime in Syria. I guess the Saudis saw "The Dirty Dozen" too many times.