Saudi Arabia executes first Pakistani woman in five years

Riyadh: Saudi authorities on Thursday executed the first Pakistani woman in five years.

According to reports, Fatima Ijaz was the first Pakistani woman to be executed since 2014.

According to Saudi media, Fatima Ijaz was beheaded along with her husband Muhammad Mustafa and another man identified as Muhammad Malik after being convicted of drug trafficking.

The executions came as Pakistan and Saudi Arabia plan to sign a prisoner transfer agreement.

Human rights groups in Pakistan have criticized the authorities in Saudi Arabia for execution of Pakistani nationals.

They also took exception to government in Islamabad for what they said its failure to protect rights of its citizens abroad.

The executions comes over a month after Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman visited Pakistan.