Saudi Man Sentenced to 500 Lashes for Gay Sex

A Saudi man was sentenced to receive 500 lashes and serve five years in prison for engaging in consensual sex with another man--a crime under Islamic law that is sometimes punished with death.

Media sources reported last month that a member of the Saudi royal family had been found guilty of murder in Britain in connection with the death of a male servant. The Saudi royal was the aggressor in an abusive sexual relationship with the victim, prosecutors said.

The killing took place last February in a London hotel, and was reportedly the last in a string of attacks endured by the servant, identified in an Oct. 19 BBC News story as 32-year-old Bandera Abdulaziz.

At trial, the court was told that the defendant, Saud Abdulaziz bin Nasser al Saud, had subjected Abdulaziz to a long series of "deeply abusive" assaults that bore a "sexual element." One such attack took place in an elevator at the Landmark Hotel in central London, and was caught on footage taken by a security camera on Jan. 1 of this year. The BBC News article included the security footage.

Three weeks after the hotel elevator attack, Abdulaziz was found dead at the Landmark Hotel. He had been strangled and beaten; according to the BBC report, the servant had "suffered internal bleeding to the brain and severe neck injuries." An AP story said that the neck injuries included a fractured larynx. Added the report, "His body was covered in bruises." Abdulaziz was found in the room he shared with his employer.

According to al Saud, the servant’s injuries were the result of an attack and robbery elsewhere in London. But the Jan. 22 security video, and another video captured by an elevator camera on Feb. 5, suggested a far more proximate cause: al Saud himself, who, the BBC article said, is gay. The prince and his servant had returned to the hotel after celebrating Valentine’s Day when the final attack took place. The next day, the prince discovered that the servant was dead. According to the BBC article, al Saud then phoned his home country in an attempt to figure out some means of covering up the killing.

Hotel staff said that the two men "appeared to be in a gay relationship," although "they rarely spoke to each other" in public, the BBC article said. An Associated Press article reported that the prosecutor in the case, Jonathan Laidlaw, referenced photos stored on a cell phone in declaring that the abusive relationship contained "sexual elements." The photos, the AP reported, were erotic nude shots of Abdulaziz.

The prince later admitted to killing Abdulaziz, but said that the servant’s death was not murder.

al Saud described his family lineage to authorities, saying that his great-uncle is the Saudi king--who also is, according to al Saud, his grandfather, the BBC reported. The AP noted that Justice David Bean took note of the defendant’s family connections, but said, "No one in this country is above the law. It would be wrong for me to sentence you either more severely or more leniently because of your membership of the Saudi royal family."

The judge also confronted al Saud with a blunt assessment of his treatment of Abdulaziz. "You killed Abdulaziz in the course of a sustained and ferocious assault," said Justice Bean. "You were in a position of domination over him, as demonstrated both by the [elevator] incident and by the sexually explicit photographs you took of him, at some point prior to Feb. 15, which were found on your mobile phone.

"Abdulaziz was a vulnerable victim, entirely subjugated to your will," added the judge. "You were in a position of authority and trust over him which you exploited ruthlessly."

The case is not being given media attention in Saudi Arabia, the AP reported, and the Saudi royal family has declined to address the killing or the sentencing.

"The defendant used his position of power, money and authority over his victim Bandar to abuse him over an extended period of time," stated Detective Chief Inspector McFarlane.

The BBC reported that al Saud could face death in Saudi Arabia--not due to the murder conviction, but rather because he is gay. Saudi Arabia punishes gays with death, though according to a Wikipedia article, the law is enforced erratically.

As it stands, however, al Saud faces a life sentence in a British jail, with parole a possibility only after twenty years are served.

Islamic law provides severe penalties for a range of behaviors associated with homosexuality, including cross-dressing. So-called "gay parties" have been targeted by Saudi police as part of an ongoing anti-gay crackdown; in July, 2008, one such party was raided by police in the Saudi town Otif, leading to the arrest of 55 party attendees, including two young men reported to have been wearing women’s clothing and make-up. The previous month saw a similar raid, also in Otif, with 20 arrests made.

Ceremonies celebrating same-sex unions have also been raided in Saudi Arabia. In 2006, in the town of Jizan, 250 men were detained after police broke up a celebration at which more than 400 guests were reportedly in attendance. In that incident, 20 men faced charges of cross-dressing or using an illegal narcotic called qat; a July 30, 2008, Pink News article reported in August of 2006 that those so charged faced up to 2,000 lashes as punishment under Muslim religious sharia law.

Homosexuality is a crime in countries where civil and sharia law are one and the same. Under sharia law, homosexuality can be punished by public execution (typically beheading). Lesser punishments are often prescribed, including jail time and lashings; Pink News reported that in October, 2007, two men convicted of sodomy were sentenced to 7,000 lashes.

Source: http://www.edgeftlauderdale.com/index.php?ch=news&sc=&sc2=news&sc3=&id=112672