UN rights office: 17 men executed in Saudi Arabia since Nov. 10

A U.N. human rights office spokesperson said on Tuesday that 17 men had been executed in Saudi Arabia since Nov. 10 for drug and contraband offences, calling the executions "deeply regrettable".

Those killed were from Syria, Pakistan, Jordan and Saudi Arabia, spokesperson Elizabeth Throssell told a Geneva press briefing. That brings the total number of executions this year to 144, she said.