SAUDI Arabia is to abolish flogging as a form of punishment, according to a legal document in Riyard.
The kingdom’s Supreme Court says flogging will be replaced by imprisonment or fines.
It says this is an extension of human rights reforms brought by King Salman and his son, the country’s de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Saudi Arabia has recently come under fire for the jailing of dissidents, and the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
Campaigners say Saudi Arabia has one of the worst records for human rights in the world, with freedom of expression severely curtailed and critics of the government subject to what they say is arbitrary arrest.
The last time that flogging in Saudi Arabia hit the headlines was in 2015 when blogger Raif Badawi was subjected to the punishment in public, reportedly after being convicted of cybercrime and insulting Islam.
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