01 August, 2017
The sentence was broadcasted across the country.
The public execution was widely aired on Huthi-run media in Yemen, framed as an example of the Shia rebels' efforts to combat crime in their areas. With his hands cuffed behind his back, al-Maghrabi shuffled his way to center of the square while armed guards surrounded him. Photos show Maghrabi laying on the floor. Before a police officer fired the fatal shots, a judge read out the judge sentence that had sealed his fate. The family, however, refused to give clemency to al-Maghrabi - thereby sealing his fate. He was killed instantly.
The execution drew a large number of onlookers given the grimness of the crime and the subsequent outcry.
He was accused of rape and murder of a three-year-old girl, Rana Al-Matari. Some spectators perched on telegraph poles and others watched from rooftops, chanting "Allah is the greatest" when Maghrabi arrived. Following the execution, Yahya al-Matari, the father of the victim said he was happy that al-Maghrabi was executed and that he felt as if he had been reborn.
Security packed in tight before and during the execution, in fear that the public would attack the suspect in retaliation before the execution. He was brought there by a prison van, which was escorted by five police patrol vehicles.
"This is the first day in my life".
Adding, 'I am relieved now'.
Yet to be understood is if more public executions are to follow in the near term....
