| Sri Lanka writes to Saudi over execution of Ex-Soldiers who are guilty of several gunpoint robberies |
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Four Sinhalese migrant workers were executed in Saudi Arabia on Monday after they were found guilty of several gunpoint robberies, the country's official news agency said. A Saudi Court had ordered Victor Korea, Ranjith De Silva, Santhosh Kumar and Sharmila Sangeeth Kumar to be executed by the sword. Two of the accused were former members of the Sri Lanka Army (SLA), Colombo based media have claimed. They are believed to have had arms training in the past, Saudi officials also said. The former soldiers left the armed forces in 2003 to migrate to Saudi, officials say.
Sri Lanka yesterday said that it has written to Saudi Arabia over the execution of fourth suspect- Shamila Sangeeth Kumara, whose sentence was to be just 15 years in prison, a local newspaper reported today. “Instead he was beheaded along with the three others, Victor Corea, Ranjith Silva and Sanath Pushpakumara. Expressing concern, the government has asked for reasons for changing his first sentence,” state owned Daily News reported. Meanwhile, Sri Lanka’s Foreign Ministry is also working to get the bodies of the four Sri Lankans. The Ministry has informed the Sri Lankan Embassy in Saudi Arabia to take necessary steps to bring the bodies home. New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) strongly criticized the beheading yesterday accusing that the four suffered a sham trial and urged the Saudi government to immediately halt all executions and retry those convicted in trials that do not meet minimum international standards of justice. |
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