Human Rights Groups Condemn Saudi Arabia’s Escalating Execution Crisis

Saudi Arabia has set a grim new annual record for executions for the second consecutive year, drawing condemnation from international human rights organizations. According to the UK-based rights group Reprieve, which tracks capital punishment in the kingdom and represents clients on death row, at least 347 individuals have been executed in 2025, surpassing the previous record of 345 in 2024.

Reprieve has declared this the “bloodiest year of executions in the kingdom since monitoring began.” The latest among those executed were two Pakistani nationals convicted on drug-related charges.

Victims Include Journalists and Protesters
The list of those put to death this year underscores the broad and alarming application of the death penalty. It includes:

• Turki al-Jasser, a journalist executed in June after being convicted of terrorism and high treason based on his writings. UNESCO’s Director-General stated his killing was “a chilling attack on freedom of expression.”

• Abdullah al-Derazi and Jalal al-Labbad, two Saudi men who were minors at the time of their alleged crimes during 2011-2012 protests against the treatment of the Shia minority. They were convicted in what Amnesty International called “grossly unfair trials” reliant on torture-tainted confessions.

• Five women.

• Issam al-Shazly, a young Egyptian fisherman executed on Tuesday after his 2021 arrest in Saudi waters. He claimed he was coerced into drug smuggling.

A “Brutal and Arbitrary” Drug War
The most striking trend, however, is the systematic use of capital punishment for non-violent drug offenses. Reprieve states that approximately two-thirds of this year’s executions were for drug-related crimes, a practice the United Nations says is “incompatible with international norms and standards.” Of those executed, over half were foreign nationals, many caught up in what critics label a draconian “war on drugs.”

Jeed Basyouni, Reprieve’s Head of Death Penalty for the Middle East and North Africa, described a system of “complete impunity.”
“It’s almost making a mockery of the human rights system,” she told the BBC, calling the crackdown “brutal and arbitrary.” She cited “endemic” torture and forced confessions within the Saudi justice system.

The surge in drug-related executions follows Saudi authorities’ decision to end an unofficial moratorium on such deaths in late 2022—a move the UN human rights office called “deeply regrettable.”

Families Living in Terror and Secrecy
The human cost extends beyond the executed. Relatives of those on death row, speaking anonymously to media, describe living in “terror.” One family member said, “The only time of the week that I sleep is on Friday and Saturday because there are no executions on those days.”
According to Reprieve, cellmates routinely witness others being “dragged kicking and screaming to their death.” The organization also reports that families are typically not notified in advance of executions, nor are they given the bodies or informed of burial sites. The method of execution, while not officially disclosed, is believed to be beheading or firing squad.

Reforms and Repression Under MBS
The rising execution toll presents a stark contrast to the social and economic reforms championed by Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. While he has loosened social restrictions, opened the country to tourism and investment, and curtailed the power of religious police, his tenure has also been marked by a severe crackdown on dissent.
“There’s been no cost for Mohammed bin Salman and his authorities for going ahead with these executions,” said Joey Shea, a Saudi Arabia researcher at Human Rights Watch. “The entertainment events, the sporting events, all of it is continuing to happen with no repercussions, really.”
Human Rights Watch summarizes the kingdom’s rights record as “abysmal,” with executions a primary concern. Activists note that in recent years, only China and Iran have executed more people.

International Calls for Action
In a statement to the BBC, Dr. Morris Tidball-Binz, the UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary, or arbitrary executions, called for an immediate moratorium on executions in Saudi Arabia with a view to abolition. He urged full compliance with international safeguards, including legal assistance and consular access for foreigners, prompt family notification, the return of remains, and the publication of comprehensive execution data.
The Saudi government, in a January 2025 letter to UN experts, defended its record, stating it “protects and upholds human rights” and that the death penalty is imposed only for “the most serious crimes” after exhaustive judicial review. The authorities have not responded to the BBC’s specific requests for comment on the record number of executions.
As the year ends, the international community faces renewed questions about engagement with a kingdom that simultaneously pursues ambitious modernization and an increasingly aggressive capital punishment regime.

 

 

Our Pashto-Dari Website

  Donate Here