Two gay men have been executed in Saudi Arabia, according to news agency

reports, after the government accused them of killing another man.

Ahmed al-Enezi and Shahir al-Roubli, who were apparently in a relationship, were reportedly beheaded over the weekend.

 

The government claims that they had killed Malik Khan after he saw them together and threatened to "expose" their relationship, Reuters reports.

Homosexuality is still a criminal offense in the country, which is considered one of the most oppressive in the world.

 

Press reports suggest the men believed Khan would blackmail them over their relationship. They are reported to have run him over, beaten him with stones and set fire to his body, in a bid to make his corpse unrecognizable.

The executions angered gay rights groups, who have warned that the Saudi government often implements its harsh laws on lesbian and gay people for no reason other than a single complaint.

 

Previous examples of its no-tolerance attitude to gay people include the censorship of gay Web sites. The government blocked gaymiddleeast.com in June 2003 and 2004, even though the site offered news and health advice to gay men in the region. It also censored international sites, including Gay.com.