Rights groups condemn record number of executions in Saudi Arabia

Rights groups say Saudi Arabia has carried out a record number of executions this year, bringing the total to at least 347 and marking the second consecutive year of record-high executions, according to the UK-based monitoring group Reprieve. The previous annual tally stood at 345 in 2024, and advocates describe the current pace as the bloodiest year since data gathering began. The grim milestone underscores broader concerns about due process and the use of capital punishment in the kingdom, even as steps toward social and economic reforms continue.

The latest executions include two Pakistani nationals convicted of drug-related offenses, and rights groups point to a broader pattern in which a substantial share of those put to death were foreign nationals. Issam al-Shazly, a young Egyptian fisherman who had said he was coerced into smuggling drugs, was executed in Saudi territorial waters this past week. Reprieve notes that about 96 executions this year were tied solely to hashish, and that more than half of those executed were foreign nationals who appear to have been swept up in a government push against drugs. The United Nations has cautioned that the death penalty for non-lethal drug offenses is incompatible with international norms, adding to calls for restraint and reform. The Saudi authorities did not respond to a BBC request for comment on the rise in executions.

“Saudi Arabia is operating with complete impunity now,” said Jeed Basyouni, Reprieve’s head of death penalty for the Middle East and North Africa. “It’s almost making a mockery of the human rights system.” She described torture and forced confessions as endemic within the Saudi criminal justice system and characterized the crackdown as brutal and arbitrary, affecting people on the social margins who often lack access to adequate legal representation. Observers note that the trend has emerged since an unofficial moratorium on the death penalty ended in late 2022, a development the UN human rights office has labeled deeply regrettable.

The case mix has fed broader concern about the kingdom’s use of capital punishment. Among those executed this year were individuals who participated in protests or carried out actions linked to political and religious tensions. Amnesty International has highlighted cases involving Abdullah al-Derazi and Jalal al-Labbad, Saudi nationals who were minors at the time of their arrests during protests in 2011 and 2012. Amnesty contends the trials relied on torture-tainted confessions and did not meet international standards. The UN has previously urged release for the group of Egyptians and Jordanians who were sentenced to death on drug charges and have since faced execution in ongoing prosecutions.

Turki al-Jasser, a Saudi journalist executed in June after years in detention, drew widespread condemnation from international rights groups and UNESCO. Critics say capital punishment against journalists constitutes a chilling attack on freedom of expression, while government officials have maintained that criminal trials meet international safeguards. Human Rights Watch has warned that the entertainment and sports activity surrounding Saudi reforms has not come at the expense of civil and political rights, cautioning that the ongoing use of the death penalty undercuts progress in other areas.

In a January 2025 correspondence to UN special rapporteurs, Saudi authorities asserted that the death penalty remains reserved for the most serious crimes and that the kingdom protects and upholds human rights. The letter also said that capital punishment is not implemented until due judicial processes at all levels have been completed and that the country adheres to international safeguards, including access to legal counsel and consular support for foreign nationals. UN experts, however, have urged a moratorium on executions and called for full transparency in data on capital punishment, including the return of remains to families.

BBC’s attempts to obtain a formal response from Saudi authorities about the surge in executions have gone unanswered. Families of prisoners on death row have described living in fear, with one relative telling the BBC that the “only time of the week I sleep is on Friday and Saturday because there are no executions on those days.” Reports from prison monitoring groups describe a chilling atmosphere where witnesses see detainees dragged to their deaths, and relatives say they often learn about executions only after the fact.

The record this year continues to draw condemnation from human rights organizations and international bodies. Experts warn that the pattern reflects systemic issues in the criminal justice system, including lack of independent oversight, coercive interrogation practices, and the disproportionate impact on foreign nationals and minorities. While Saudi authorities have pursued economic diversification and social liberalization under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the mounting executions remain a central point of international scrutiny and a potential obstacle to broader acceptance by foreign governments and international institutions.

As 2025 progresses, rights groups and international bodies will continue to monitor whether Saudi Arabia adopts concrete measures, including a moratorium on capital punishment, robust legal safeguards, and greater transparency around death-penalty statistics, to align its practices with evolving international norms. The global community will likely assess any policy shifts in the context of both internal reforms and external diplomatic dynamics, particularly as the kingdom hosts major economic and cultural initiatives aimed at reshaping its image on the world stage.