A Kenyan, Stephen Munyakho, who was on the execution block in Saudi Arabia, is set to return home after the Muslim World League intervened and paid the necessary fines.
Speaking during Iftar dinner at State House on Tuesday, March 25, United Democratic Alliance (UDA) Party Secretary-General Hassan Omar noted that the intervention was made possible through diplomatic efforts led by the Kenyan government, religious leaders and the Saudi Arabian authorities.
He moreover revealed that the government had in 2024 sought assistance from the Muslim World League to help secure the release of Stephen Munyakho.
Stephen Munyakho, spared from execution in Saudi Arabia after a $1M (Ksh.129M) settlement. Photo: Courtesy.
According to Omar, the efforts bore fruit after diplomatic engagements between Kenya and Saudi Arabia resulted in the necessary settlement being paid.
“The ambassador of Saudi Arabia to Kenya and our ambassador to Saudi Arabia have confirmed that the request has since been honoured, the one million dollars has been paid, and the Kenyan will return home safely,” he noted.
Omar further warned Kenyans living abroad, urging them to adhere to the laws of their host countries to avoid trouble.
Munyakho was scheduled for execution on Wednesday, May 15, after being found guilty of killing a Yemeni national in Saudi Arabia.
However, his execution was postponed by a year following Kenya’s diplomatic intervention to secure his release.
His case gained national attention after his mother, veteran journalist Dorothy Kweyu, pleaded with the Kenyan government to intervene and save her son from execution.
Munyakho has been imprisoned since 2012 and was required to raise Ksh 150 million as compensation to the family of the Yemeni national or face execution.
