Saudi prince executed for murdering man in brawl

It is unusual for members of the Saudi Arabian royal family to be executed

A Saudi prince has been executed for shooting a man dead during a mass brawl three years ago outside Riyadh.

Prince Turki bin Saud al-Kabir was put to death in the capital. No details were given as to how he was executed - most condemned people are beheaded.

The prince is the 134th person to be put to death this year, according to a tally compiled by the AFP news agency.

But it is rare for members of the royal family, who are estimated to number several thousand, to be executed.

One of the most well-known cases of a Saudi royal being executed was that of Faisal bin Musaid al Saud, who assassinated his uncle, King Faisal, in 1975.

'Blood money refused'

Prince Turki had been convicted by a General Court of murdering his compatriot, Adel bin Suleiman al-Muhaimeed, and sentenced to death, the interior ministry said.

The verdict and sentence were upheld by the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court, and a royal decree was issued to proceed with the execution, it added.

The victim's family refused offers of "blood money" by which they would receive financial compensation in return for not demanding the death sentence, Saudi-owned Al-Arabiya network reported.

The interior ministry said the government was "keen to keep order, stabilise security and bring about justice through implementing the rules prescribed by Allah".

Some Saudis praised King Salman on social media for being "decisive" while others said they were pleased to see that the "law applied to everyone".

Most people executed in Saudi Arabia are convicted for murder and drug trafficking, although nearly 50 people convicted of terrorism offences were put to death on a single day in January, among them the prominent Shia cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr.

Also on Tuesday, another Saudi citizen was executed in the Qatif region of Eastern Province, the interior ministry said in a separate statement. Saad Bin Ahmed al-Shamrani was convicted of abducting and raping a young woman, it added.