Saudi Arabia Sets New Annual Execution Record as Use of Death Penalty Surges
The kingdom has carried out more executions in 2025 than any previous year on record, continuing a pattern of rising capital punishment tied to drug and serious offence convictions.
Saudi Arabia has recorded an unprecedented number of executions in 2025, surpassing its own historical annual high for the second consecutive year as authorities continue to apply the death penalty across a broad range of offences.
Interior Ministry figures and independent tallying show that at least three hundred and forty people have been put to death this year, exceeding the previous record of 338 executions in 2024 and marking the highest total documented since systematic monitoring began.
The count covers executions carried out up to mid-December and includes individuals convicted of a mix of serious crimes and drug-related offences, with drug convictions accounting for a substantial majority of this year’s cases, according to human rights monitors.
Among those executed are citizens and foreign nationals, reflecting Saudi Arabia’s longstanding position as one of the world’s most frequent users of capital punishment, alongside China and Iran.
The resurgence and expansion of executions for drug-related crimes follow the resumption of capital sentences for narcotics offences at the end of 2022 after a three-year suspension.
Analysts link the sharp rise in death sentences to the kingdom’s intensified enforcement under its so-called “war on drugs,” launched in 2023 to counter the trafficking and use of stimulants such as Captagon.
Rights organisations have raised concerns about the scope and application of the death penalty in Saudi Arabia, noting that many of those executed are foreign workers or non-Saudi defendants who may face legal and linguistic barriers within the judicial process.
The continued reliance on capital punishment for non-lethal drug offences also draws criticism from international human rights bodies, which argue that such use is inconsistent with global standards that reserve the death penalty for only the “most serious crimes” involving intentional killing.
Amid these record figures, debates persist about the balance between domestic security policy, legal fairness and alignment with international norms as the kingdom’s justice practices attract sustained global scrutiny.
Interior Ministry figures and independent tallying show that at least three hundred and forty people have been put to death this year, exceeding the previous record of 338 executions in 2024 and marking the highest total documented since systematic monitoring began.
The count covers executions carried out up to mid-December and includes individuals convicted of a mix of serious crimes and drug-related offences, with drug convictions accounting for a substantial majority of this year’s cases, according to human rights monitors.
Among those executed are citizens and foreign nationals, reflecting Saudi Arabia’s longstanding position as one of the world’s most frequent users of capital punishment, alongside China and Iran.
The resurgence and expansion of executions for drug-related crimes follow the resumption of capital sentences for narcotics offences at the end of 2022 after a three-year suspension.
Analysts link the sharp rise in death sentences to the kingdom’s intensified enforcement under its so-called “war on drugs,” launched in 2023 to counter the trafficking and use of stimulants such as Captagon.
Rights organisations have raised concerns about the scope and application of the death penalty in Saudi Arabia, noting that many of those executed are foreign workers or non-Saudi defendants who may face legal and linguistic barriers within the judicial process.
The continued reliance on capital punishment for non-lethal drug offences also draws criticism from international human rights bodies, which argue that such use is inconsistent with global standards that reserve the death penalty for only the “most serious crimes” involving intentional killing.
Amid these record figures, debates persist about the balance between domestic security policy, legal fairness and alignment with international norms as the kingdom’s justice practices attract sustained global scrutiny.
