SANAA: A police officer executes Hussein Al-Saket, 22, who was convicted of raping and murdering a four-year-old girl Safaa Al-Matari, in Tahrir Square yesterday. - AFP

SANAA: Yemenis gathered yesterday in the rebel-held capital to witness the putting to death of a man convicted of raping and killing a child, in the second such public execution in weeks. Hussein Al-Saket, 22, was found guilty of abducting, raping and murdering a four-year-old girl, who he later buried, said Rajeh Ezzedine, a judge who attended the execution. Ali Ayedh, the victim's uncle, said Saket "took part in the search for the girl before being unmasked" during the police investigation. He said his public execution would act as a "deterrent for criminals".

Saket was placed face down on Tahrir square in Sanaa, which the Shiite Houthi rebels have controlled since 2014. A policeman shot him dead through the back with five bullets aiming for the heart, before his body was strung up on the end of a crane. On July 31, another man was executed in the same square after being convicted of raping and murdering a three-year-old girl. Both executions have been framed as an example of the rebels' efforts to combat crime in their areas. - AFP