Rights experts have raised concerns about the fairness of trials in the kingdom. PHOTO: REUTERS
The regional adversaries are at loggerheads over crises in Iraq, Syria and Yemen, as well as the disaster at the Hajj in September in which 465 Iranians died in a crush of pilgrims near Makkah.
Saudi Arabia executes three Iranian drug traffickers
According to Iranian state media, the death sentences of the three men, who had been convicted of smuggling large amounts of hashish to the kingdom, were carried out in the city of Dammam earlier in the day.
"Countries refrain from executing such sentences by respecting bilateral relations and keeping in mind that implementing such sentences will not bear a positive effect on ties," Iran's deputy foreign minister Hassan Qashqavi was quoted as saying by Press TV on Sunday.
Last year, Saudi Arabia executed more people than any country except China and Iran. Most executions in Saudi Arabia are by public beheading.
Iran accuses Saudi of Hajj safety errors after stampede
International monitoring groups Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch say weaknesses in the Saudi justice system make convictions unsafe, and they have also criticized the frequent use of execution for non-violent offences.
The conservative kingdom, which uses sharia law, or Islamic law, and whose judiciary is composed of clerics, denies that its trials are unfair.
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