Sources from Riyadh stated that the latest executions were carried out in Riyadh, the Muslim holy cities of Mecca and Medina, the predominantly Sunni province of Qassim, and in the Eastern Province, home to the country's Shiite minority. Meanwhile, the men were executed "for adopting terrorist and extremist thinking and for forming terrorist cells to corrupt and destabilize security", said the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA).
Furthermore, it said one person was crucified after his execution, a punishment reserved for particularly serious crimes. Meanwhile at least 100 people have been executed in Saudi Arabia since the start of the year, according to data released by SPA. Earlier on Sunday, four men were killed in an attack on a security services base north of the capital Riyadh in an assault claimed by the jihadist Islamic State group.
Moreover, Saudi authorities arrested 13 "terrorist" suspects the next day, but they did not say where the arrests took place or if they were linked to Sunday's attack. A charge often used in Saudi Arabia against Shiite activists said the interior ministry said some of those executed Tuesday were accused of "inciting sectarian strife". Apparently the Eastern Province has seen bouts of unrest since 2011 when protesters emboldened by the Arab Spring took to the streets demanding an end to alleged discrimination by the Sunni-dominated government.
