Three Saudi men were beheaded on Tuesday for committing acts of sodomy and "seducing young men," reports the Associated Press quoting a statement by the Interior Ministry.

According to the statement carried by the official Saudi Press Agency, Ali bin Hatan bin Saad, Muhammad bin Suleiman bin Muhammad and Muhammad bin Khalil bin Abdullah were executed in the southwestern mountain resort city of Abha in Asir province.

The trio ?committed acts of sodomy, married each other, seduced young men and attacked those who rebuked them,? the statement said.

The executions were the first this year in Saudi Arabia where homosexuality is punishable by death. Last year, at least 81 people were beheaded.

Saudi Arabia follows strict Islamic sharia law, executing murderers, rapists and drug smugglers, usually by public beheading while robbers are punished by having limbs cut off.