Saudi King Strips Crown Prince of Prosecution Oversight

Local Editor

Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz issued a royal decree that restructures the country's system for prosecutions, essentially stripping the crown prince of longstanding powers overseeing criminal investigations.

The king's decree issued Saturday renames the Bureau of Investigation and Prosecution [BIP] as the office of Public Prosecution and orders that a newly appointed public prosecutor report directly to the monarch.

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, who also serves as Interior Minister, had overseen the BIP and had been tasked with nominating its chairman. Rather than being a part of the Ministry of Justice, the bureau had been attached to the Ministry of Interior, which oversees police and other security forces.

The BIP's broad range of duties included investigating crimes, filing cases, prosecuting individuals, appealing court judgments and supervising the execution of criminal sentences.

The kingdom executed a total of 153 people in 2015, a global high.

The country had come under particular criticism from human rights groups for the executions carried out for non-fatal crimes.

Saudi authorities said the executions reveal the Saudi government's commitment to "maintaining security and realizing justice."

Amnesty International says Saudi Arabia has one of the highest execution rates in the world. Human Rights Watch has also called on the Saudi regime to abolish its "ghastly" beheadings.

Rights experts had raised concerns about the fairness of trials in the country.

Muslim clerics had also denounced Riyadh for executing suspects without giving them a chance to defend themselves, describing the Saudi authorities as uncivilized.

saudi arabia | prince mohammad bin nayef | king salman | bip

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team