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Saudi execution totals 2025
Saudi Arabia carried out a record 356 executions in 2025, up from 338 in 2024, according to tallies compiled by AFP and human-rights monitors.
“Saudi Arabia executed 356 people in 2025 — the highest annual total on record, and up from 338 in 2024, according to tallies by Agence France‑Presse and human rights groups.”
Multiple reports say Riyadh attributes much of the rise to an intensified campaign against drugs, and those reports cite official figures showing 243 of the 2025 executions were for drug-related offences.
The surge continues a recent upward trend and has prompted renewed international attention on Saudi Arabia's use of the death penalty.
Saudi anti-narcotics campaign
Most outlets link the surge to a stepped-up anti-narcotics campaign that Riyadh resumed in late 2022, often described as a 'war on drugs'.
Reports describe intensified policing — including more highway and border checkpoints, large seizures of illicit pills (notably Captagon), and mass arrests — and note that many of those executed were convicted on drug charges.
Saudi authorities have defended the measures as law enforcement and public-order efforts.
Criticism of Saudi executions
Human-rights groups and watchdogs strongly criticized the year’s execution toll, arguing the expanded use of capital punishment — especially for drug offences and predominantly affecting foreign nationals — undermines international norms and Saudi efforts to project a modern image.
“Reprieve says about two-thirds of the drug convictions were for non‑lethal offences — a practice the UN says violates international norms — and notes endemic torture and forced confessions.”
NGOs and monitors cited in coverage called attention to alleged forced confessions, lengthy delays between arrest and execution, and the disproportionate impact on migrants.
Saudi officials counter that capital punishment is imposed following appeals and is necessary for public order.
Media framing of executions
Coverage differed in how far it linked the executions to political repression and minority targeting.
Some outlets noted allegations that the death penalty has also been applied to political dissenters and members of the Shi’a minority, while the primary framing in most reports remained the anti‑narcotics campaign.
That divergence shapes whether reporting reads mainly as criminal-justice coverage (seizures, checkpoints, drug prosecutions) or as human-rights and political analysis (due process, political prisoners, minority targeting).
Saudi executions and implications
Critics say the spike in executions undermines Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 modernization drive and damages its international human-rights standing.
“The spike comes as Riyadh deepens ties with the United States (President Trump designated Saudi Arabia a major non‑NATO ally in November), a relationship that may bring greater international scrutiny of the kingdom’s human‑rights record.”
Officials argue the measures are legally justified and necessary for public safety.
Coverage noted the record executions come as Riyadh deepens diplomatic and economic ties abroad, which some analysts say could bring heightened scrutiny.