Four men executed in Saudi Arabia for hash possession

Four men have been executed in Saudi Arabia for possessing the cannabis product hashish.

Hadi bin Saleh Abdullah al-Mutlaq, Mufreh bin Jaber Zayed al-Yami, Ali bin Jaber Zayed al-Yami and Awadh bin Saleh Abdullah al-Mutlaq, who were all from the Yemen, allegedly committed the offence in 2007.

International human rights watchdog Amnesty International said they were two sets of brothers from the same extended family and that their confessions may have been obtained through torture.

It is thought they were beheaded but last year Saudi Arabia used firing squads to kill some prisoners.

The deaths bring the total number of executions carried out in the country to 18 in the last two weeks, provoking alarm from human rights groups.