Saudi Arabia executed two Bangladeshi nationals, Nazrul Islam Abdul Basir and Sweety Akhtar, in the Mecca region on October 14, after convicting them of an “indecent” or “immoral” act inside a mosque. The sentence was imposed under ta’zir, a discretionary category of Islamic law.
In the above context, a video showing a burqa-clad woman being publicly beheaded has gone viral on social media. It shows a crowd surrounding the woman as a man in Arabic attire carries out the beheading.
The video is shared with a caption claiming it documents the October 14 execution of two Bangladeshi nationals in Mecca, Saudi Arabia.
A social media user shared the video with a caption that reads, “Shocking news from Saudi Arabia! Big claim regarding the Bangladeshi couple caught kissing in Mecca!”
SouthCheck found that the claim is false. The viral video is from a 2015 beheading of a Myanmar woman.
On a Google reverse image search, we found that the same video was shared by the Facebook Page, Middle East Eye, a Middle East-based news organisation. The video is shared on January 17, 2015, with a caption suggesting that Saudi Arabia publicly beheaded Laila Bint Abdul Muttalib Basim, a Burmese resident, in Mecca after convicting her of torturing and killing her seven-year-old stepdaughter.
Footage showed her protesting her innocence before the execution. Saudi authorities said it upheld justice and security. The case drew criticism over the public method, lack of painkillers, and questions about her confession and trial. It was the kingdom’s ninth execution that year.
The incident was also reported by the website Middle East Eye on December 22, 2015.
A screenshot of the incident was also shared by the Pakistani news website, Dawn. The incident was reported on January 27, 2015. The report suggests that the beheading took place in Makkah. A Burmese woman named Laila Bin Abdul Muttalib Basim, who lived in Saudi Arabia, was first dragged on a public street. Then, she was grabbed by four policemen, while a man took a sword and cut off her head.
It took three blows to do this until the head was finally severed. Until then, the woman could be heard screaming and begging for her life, a plea that was, of course, completely ignored. “I did not kill! I did not kill!” she screams.
Hence, we can ascertain that the viral claim is false.