Let's please not smear our allies. Saudi Arabia DID NOT crucify anyone as reported earlier here

[David Krout]

It's fine to be against one of our allies in the war on terror, in this case, Saudi Arabia. But to falsely state that this nation crucified anyone is IMO an attempt to make the country seem as a land of savages.

The fact is that the alleged criminals had their heads chopped off.

CBS News:

"Seven Saudi men convicted of theft, looting and armed robbery were beheaded on Wednesday, according to the country's official news agency, more than a week after their families and a rights group appealed to the king for clemency. http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-202_162-57573995/beheadings-not-crucifixion-for-alleged-saudi-thieves/

Update: I am being given a link proving that hey were beheaded and crucified: http://www.amnesty.org/en/news/saudi-arabia-five-beheaded-and-crucified-amid-disturbing-rise-executions-2013-05-21

Still, were they burned to death? No. They could have burned them, but they didn't. My point is that they are not as savage as they would be if they were more savage than they are.

[darkangel218]

1. Woohooo!!

Beheading!! How great!!!

Please excuse our humanity!!

[backscatter712]

2. They only got beheaded? How humane of them. n/t

[99th_Monkey]

3. Oh well .. pff. the Saudi's ONLY beheaded them? That's so NOT a big deal.

On Edit: Human Rights Watch still thinks it IS
a big deal, that justice was not served.

[scarletwoman]

4. Ah, they were only beheaded. That's much more enlightened.

So glad that Obama & Kerry want us to dance to the tune of our good ally, who so generously wants to fund our role in a proxy war between them and Iran for control of the Gulf.

[lumpy]

14. According to many people who post on DU, this country is just as bad as Saudi Arabia.

You know: we are being hoodwinked by all of our politicians, the US has killed millions of people including babies and we are going to kill more, stuff like that. These people should not be outraged by what S.Arabia does if they are so outraged by what the US does.

[NuclearDem]

5. Operation Syrian Freedom brought to you by...

The House of Saud! Come for the oil, stay because we chopped your head off!

[Catherina]

6. You're wrong. Saudi Arabia crucifies people. Read this from Amnesty

First the people are beheaded, then their heads are sewn back on and they're exhibited as a warning. In the case of the story I posted, it turns out that after the outcry, the King granted some sort of warped clemency but the fact remains that crucifixion is still practiced there.

Originally, those young men were sentenced to be beheaded and then crucified per your link.

"an attempt to make the country seem as a land of savages" - Sorry, it is what it is.

The original sentences called for death by firing squad and crucifixion. However, SPA said on Wednesday that the seven were beheaded. A security official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media, said three men with swords carried out the executions.

The oil-rich kingdom follows a strict implementation of Islamic law, or Shariah, under which people convicted of murder, rape or armed robbery can be executed, usually by sword.

Saudi Arabia has executed 23 people so far this year, including the seven men on Wednesday. Last year it executed 76 people and in 2011, 79.

Also, several people were reported crucified in Saudi Arabia last year. Human rights groups have condemned crucifixions, including cases in which people were beheaded and then crucified. In 2009, Amnesty International condemned such executions as "the ultimate form of cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-202_162-57573995/beheadings-not-crucifixion-for-alleged-saudi-thieves/

Pictures today emerged on social media appearing to show five decapitated bodies hanging from a horizontal pole with their heads wrapped in bags.

The beheading and “crucifixion” took place in front of the University of Jizan where students are taking exams.

In Saudi Arabia, the practice of “crucifixion” refers to the court-ordered public display of the body after execution, along with the separated head if beheaded. It takes place in a public square to allegedly act as a deterrent.

http://www.amnesty.org/en/news/saudi-arabia-five-beheaded-and-crucified-amid-disturbing-rise-executions-2013-05-21

A quick google brings up more articles, pictures, videos...

‘Crucifixion’ of Yemenis in Jizan: Everything old is new again in Saudi Arabia

RIYADH - Saudi Arabia on Tuesday executed five Yemenis and displayed their bodies in public for killing a national and forming a gang that committed robberies across several towns in the kingdom, the interior ministry said.

New York-based watchdog Human Rights Watch (HRW) slammed the punishment as "outrageous."

The ministry later also announced, in statements carried by the official SPA news agency, that a Saudi was beheaded in the southwestern region of Assir for the murder of a fellow citizen.

The five were executed in the town of Jizan, also southwest Saudi Arabia.

The beheadings on Tuesday bring the number of people executed in the kingdom this year to 47, according to an AFP tally.

A witness in Jizan said that the five men were "beheaded by the sword" and displayed in public near a university.

Their bodies were removed from the area a few hours later, according to witnesses.

In a picture on microblogging website Twitter, five men are seen hanging from a rope tied to their waists on a horizontal bar between two cranes, in a public display which Saudi authorities refer to as "crucifixion."

http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=58898

Saudi Arabia Beheads and Crucifies Yemeni for Sodomy, Amnesty Releases Final Words of Man Executed for Robbery

March 29, 2013 11:42 AM GMT

Only days after Saudi Arabia defied appeals from the United Nations and executed seven young men, local authorities have beheaded and crucified a man for sodomising and murdering a Pakistani national.

...

http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/articles/451700/20130329/saudi-arabia-beheading-crucifixion-execution-punishment-rape.htm

Saudi court upholds child rapist crucifixion ruling


RIYADH | Tue Nov 3, 2009 2:22pm IST

(Reuters) - A Saudi court of cassation upheld a ruling to behead and crucify a 22-year-old man convicted of raping five children and leaving one of them to die in the desert, newspapers reported on Tuesday.

....

http://in.reuters.com/article/2009/11/03/idINIndia-43639120091103

[Aerows]

9. Maybe I'm strange, but if I'm beheaded already

I don't think I'll particularly care what happens after that fact. Crucifixion is a horrible ordeal that includes dying slowly because you become dehydrated and asphyxiate. Not that I'm keen on either way to go, but I think I'll pick option one to save time and suffering.

[Bluenorthwest]

11. The displaying of tortured corpses is an act of terror targeting the family, friends and others

associated with the executed person.

[Aerows]

17. It's grisly, no doubt about it

I was just remarking that it wouldn't be as painful as a 2 or 3 day crucifixion where that is what leads to death. It's horrific either way.

[Catherina]

12. No but your family, friends and people passing by. That's who the spectacle is for

The living care more about how dead bodies are treated than the dead.

[Aerows]

18. It's extremely gruesome

and sickening. Just less painful than hanging up to die for a few days . But I agree, horrific for the families.

[VanillaRhapsody]

28. thank you for your explanation of why being gassed is a torturous death...

and that not all death is equal as your post just so eloquently proves!

[Aerows]

31. Oh, I wouldn't say it isn't

neither is bleeding out due to having shrapnel embedded in your body and dying of toxemia after several days while your family watches you.

Or maybe just losing a few limbs, and then getting cancer from depleted uranium ballistics that are specifically used due to their weight and penetrative ability without thought of their radioactive repercussions.

Or maybe just burning to death due to White Phosphorous. If you can champion using white phosphorous and it's affect on the human body, I think you will find Sarin gas to be a preferable way to die.

[VanillaRhapsody]

32. I would still choose it over gas...

and has Obama used White Phosperous?

[Aerows]

33. If you would choose white phosphorous over gas

then you have no idea what it does.

Use in Libya (2011
During the NATO operation in Libya, some news sources[84][85] reported about alleged use of white phosphorus by NATO forces.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_phosphorus#Use_in_Libya_.282011.29

Condoning the use of it by allies is consent to using it.

EDIT: Be careful of scrolling down. The pictures of an affected victim are gruesome.

[VanillaRhapsody]

46. Yeah I do...I would take that to paralysis waiting to die by drowning in your own saliva or vomit

[Aerows]

49. Well we all choose differently

I'd pick that over burning alive. Tastes differ, I guess, but in the end, you are still dead.

[VanillaRhapsody]

51. burnt alive will happen much quicker than Sarin can take.

hence why we even have those videos of all those people dying in the hospital...

[Aerows]

53. You must be thinking of a different chemical weapon than I am

See, it can be homemade. Are you saying that this is slow-killing Sarin gas? Because from your description, it sounds like a very slow-killing, low grade weapon.

Is that what you are saying? I just want to clear that up before we go further in this discussion.

[Aerows]

64. Waiting for chemical weapon injury descriptions

**crickets** **crickets**

[A HERETIC I AM]

61. "Crucifixion's a dawdle"

[lumpy]

20. Why haven't we heard about all this before today? Where was the outrage then when this

was happening down through the ages ??? Could be because S. Arabia has been our 'allies' who support doing something about Assad? Keep that ammo coming.
After all, people on DU point out that the US has no compunction against slaughtering millions or isn't that just as atrocious ?

[darkangel218]

7. And what kind of "allies" were they??

Didn't most of the 9/11 terrorists come from Saudi Arabia??

[deutsey]

59. Indeed they did...but at least they didn't crucify anyone

I think we'll all sleep better in that knowledge.

[PoliticAverse]

8. Here is Amnesty International's release on the issue...

http://www.amnesty.org/en/news/saudi-arabia-five-beheaded-and-crucified-amid-disturbing-rise-executions-2013-05-21

Excerpt:

Pictures today emerged on social media appearing to show five decapitated bodies hanging from a horizontal pole with their heads wrapped in bags.

The beheading and “crucifixion” took place in front of the University of Jizan where students are taking exams.

In Saudi Arabia, the practice of “crucifixion” refers to the court-ordered public display of the body after execution, along with the separated head if beheaded. It takes place in a public square to allegedly act as a deterrent.

[darkangel218]

10. Disgusting.

[lumpy]

13. The CBS report indicated in your post was dated March 13, 2013. There was a discussion about

that yesterday on DU with different reports claiming that the prisoners were executed by firing squad, some saying they were beheaded and some by cruxifying . The whole discussion went on like it was a current happening. Who can you believe anymore?
It is common knowledge that S. Arabia has traditionally used such cruel methods of execution, but, reportedly, have decided to use more humane methods like many do in the rest of the world.
Better if all criminal executions were outlawed.

Most likely this discussion was brought up to smear Saudi Arabia further because of their involvement in Syrian affairs and the offer of money to support an attack on Syria. All this muck is now being dragged out to discredit any attacks against Syria.

[scarletwoman]

16. "All this muck is now being dragged out to discredit any attacks against Syria."

As well it should be. Saudi Arabia wants us to get involved in a proxy war against Iran, because SA wants to be the undisputed power in the region.

SA is a farking medievel autocracy that exports oil and fundamentalist Wahabi Islam. They are one of the most corrupt and despicable regimes on the planet. That the U.S. calls them "allies" is only to our shame.

[Aerows]

21. I don't know how anyone can

argue with those stark, cold facts, and that is exactly what they are.

[scarletwoman]

23. Thanks. I've been saying this in numerous threads, but no one has noticed until you did.

Thanks again.

[Aerows]

24. Keep saying it until enough people notice

my friend. It's grim business telling the truth sometimes, and it's no easier for those willing to hear it.

[lumpy]

26. Not excusing S. Arabia for their cruel methods of execution, however there are moritoriams in that

country to do away with traditional executions and some reports that the 7 who were executed were actually killed by firing squad. Sam old thing. who to believe. I hope there will be changes in S.Arabia.
It wasn't that long ago that the United States was executing by hanging and electric chair (the e. chair was a agonizing and cruel form of execution).
The push against cruelty is slowly and effectively making inroads

[scarletwoman]

29. You're, like, totally skating around the point that YOU brought up.

i.e. - bombing Syria.

[lumpy]

35. i.e. bombing Syria, the point that I brougt up??? You lost me. Don't understand what you are

trying to say. Spit it out.

[scarletwoman]

43. Your very own post, #13 in this thread.

The CBS report indicated in your post was dated March 13, 2013. There was a discussion about

that yesterday on DU with different reports claiming that the prisoners were executed by firing squad, some saying they were beheaded and some by cruxifying . The whole discussion went on like it was a current happening. Who can you believe anymore?
It is common knowledge that S. Arabia has traditionally used such cruel methods of execution, but, reportedly, have decided to use more humane methods like many do in the rest of the world.
Better if all criminal executions were outlawed.

Most likely this discussion was brought up to smear Saudi Arabia further because of their involvement in Syrian affairs and the offer of money to support an attack on Syria. All this muck is now being dragged out to discredit any attacks against Syria.

Does that make it clear?

[lumpy]

44. What should we do about it ?

[David Krout]

19. I embarrassed myself because of you lumpy. Why did you do this to me?

I saw when you said elsewhere that it was Glenn Beck spreading this crucifixion stuff, and I believed you. This angered me lot, so I made a thread denouncing the smearing of the Saudis.

Now I realize that Beck doesn't work for CBS or Amnesty International!

Lumpy, I have egg on my face because of you. Why? Why!



I must withdraw now.

[lumpy]

34. Glen Beck's rag, The Blaze, DID print the article about crucifixion. Beck's site was mentioned

as the source of that news by the poster on DU, not me. I did resource the origin of the story immediately and discovered it was reported on more legitimate sources.
I am surprised that you thought Glenn Beck worked for CBS or Amnesty Intl.
I have know for a long time that S.Arabia has used inhumane methods of execution, so it was not news to me.
Sorry you have egg on your face, but don't blame me; I won't take responsibility for anything that come out of your mouth. You said what you said, not I.

[jmowreader]

25. Firing squad is more humane than lethal injection

Many of the people who've been executed by the three-drug method regained consciousness while the second drug, which paralyzes every muscle except your heart, does its job. Imagine lying there unable to breathe for several minutes, knowing you're gonna die and have no way to get away from it.

Firing squad executions kill instantly, if the bullets enter the heart and they use enough trained marksmen to guarantee that happens.

Beheading, OTOH...that IS fucking cruel.

[lumpy]

42. Well I guess if I was to be executed through war or my criminal actions I would prefer the rifle.

And this country still executes law breakers with chemicals? Guess Assad should be forgiven, oh I forgot, those weren't criminals that Assad executed.

[jmowreader]

65. Assad's chemicals are way worse than ours

So far, we haven't figured out a way to get lethal execution drugs to take out the executioners instead. (If we were able to do that, Texas would probably go back to ropes, horses and oak trees...)

[backscatter712]

27. If I remember my Carl Sagan quote correctly:

If it can be destroyed by the truth, it deserves to be destroyed by the truth.

[orpupilofnature57]

57. ' the Baloney Test Kit ' it works 10 out of 10 times .

[Logical]

15. Self delete this!! n-t

[Aerows]

38. It's the damn truth

It's gross, it's barbaric, and it's the people we ally our nation with so that we continue to have oil.

[Marrah_G]

22. this is some wierd satire, right? n/t

[Aerows]

36. Unfortunately, no

Which is what sucks.

[Iggo]

30. Fuck our allies.

[lumpy]

45. Yah, who needs allies...

[Iggo]

47. Fuck our allies, the Saudis.

Sorry. Thought that was a given.

[abelenkpe]

37. But they're gonna pay us to

Bomb a country that hasn't attacked us.

[Uncle Joe]

39. Remind me not to hire you as my defense attorney

should I ever need one.

Thanks for the thread, David Krout.

[ocpagu]

40. Oh, they were only beheaded. Great humanitarian partners you got there... n/t

[Warpy]

41. Beheading was once reserved for royalty

since it was considered the quickest and most humane way to put people to death. Commoners were hanged, most of them suffering rather slow strangulation rather than the snapped neck that confers a quicker death.

The headless bodies are generally what is crucified there, to stand for 3 days as a warning to other criminals.

As I've said before, just because our death penalty looks cleaner, that doesn't mean it is. It's unfairly administered and heavily overused.

[lumpy]

52. I agree Warpy, this country should do away with the death penalty.

In the past the US executed people by hanging, the electric chair, and now, someone was saying on DU that chemical executions (supposedly humane) that are in use in the US sometimes backfire leaving people paralyzed and alive before death sets in.
Time to do away with these tortures entirely.

[Democracyinkind]

48. THEY ARE NOT OUR ALLIES.

They are allied with a couple of the most powerful families in the US. That alliance is is directed against the Saudi and American people (and whoever else is up for grabs with petrodollars). Do not for a minute think that the people pulling off this shit are you're allies.

[rug]

50. Well that's a relief.

[orpupilofnature57]

54. Saudi Arabia, has the benefit of Democracy without the Yoke..

Dangerous to have a Bureau ,or people who have Carte Blanche checking .

[Vashta Nerada]

55. Haha.

Your argument failed.

[Nye Bevan]

56. Well, we strap people to tables and inject them with poison.

So we don't exactly have the moral high ground here, unfortunately.

[Ken Burch]

58. This thread title sounds like the most extreme headline The Onion ever ran.

[bhikkhu]

60. Saudi Arabia is certainly not my favorite ally

They are going to let women vote in 2015, but they still aren't allowed to drive, and they are required to have a "male guardian". Living independently isn't an option.

And they are one of only five nations left in the world that still perform public executions. The others are Iran, Syria, North Korea, and Yemen; not especially good company. I think they can stand a little criticism for that.

[Tx4obama]

62. NOT beheaded - They were SHOT by a firing squad

Here: http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2013/03/201331221118103218.html

-snip-

Seven Saudi men convicted of theft, looting and armed robbery have been executed, according to the country's official news agency, more than a week after their families and a rights group appealed to the king for clemency.

The executions took place on Wednesday in Abha, a city in the southern region of Asir, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) said.

The Associated Press news agency quoted a resident who witnessed the execution as saying that the seven were shot dead by a firing squad, a first in the kingdom, which traditionally has beheaded convicts sentenced to death.

Another witness told AFP news agency by telephone that the execution was "implemented a while ago at a public square in Abha", adding that the defendants were "shot dead" and not beheaded as is customary in the kingdom.

-snip-

[Ken Burch]

63. Well, the Saudis probably remember that crucifixion didn't work too well for the Romans

People in that part of the world do study history and tactics.