Rights groups condemn Saudi ‘killing spree’ as executions soar

DUBAI — Two human rights groups condemned Saudi Arabia's soaring use of the death penalty on Thursday after the kingdom carried out the highest number of executions on record last year.

Reprieve and the European Saudi Organization for Human Rights (ESOHR), which monitor executions in Saudi Arabia, said the figures stand in contrast to the country's attempts to present a more tolerant, open image.

Saudi Arabia, under de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, is spending big on tourist infrastructure and top sports events such as the 2034 World Cup as it tries to diversify its oil-reliant economy.

According to an AFP tally based on announcements in state media, at least 338 people were executed last year—nearly twice the 2023 figure of 170, and way above the previous known record of 196 in 2022. More than 100 were foreigners. 

The two rights groups gave a slightly higher toll of 345 for last year. Annual executions have more than doubled since King Salman, Prince Mohammed's father, came to power in 2015, they said.

"This killing spree exposes the reality of Mohammed bin Salman's Saudi Arabia," Jeed Basyouni, head of London-based Reprieve's Middle East and North Africa team, said in a statement.

"How many executions would be too many, before the World Cup arrives in Saudi Arabia in 2034?" he added. "At the current rate, it would be more than 3,000 dead."

Saudi Arabia is one of the world's most prolific users of the death penalty. Only China and Iran executed more people in 2023, according to Amnesty International, which has yet to publish its 2024 figures.

The Saudi authorities say the death penalty is necessary to maintain public order and is only used after all avenues for appeal have been exhausted.

Executions have accelerated in recent months. Between July and December, 254 people were put to death—more than during all of 2022, the previous annual high since Amnesty began compiling figures in 1990.

On Wednesday, the first day of 2025, six Iranians were put to death for drug offences, prompting Iran to summon the Saudi ambassador in protest.

More than a third of last year's executions, 117, were carried out for drug convictions, according to the AFP tally.

"These are frightening times for people in Saudi Arabia," said Taha al-Hajji, ESOHR's legal director.

"We have known for many years that the regime uses the death penalty as a weapon, but it is being applied more widely and for lesser crimes than ever before." — Agence France-Presse