Saudi Arabia executions in 2025 reached a historic and deeply troubling high, with at least 356 people put to death, marking the largest annual execution total since systematic records began.
Human Rights Watch documented this escalation as the second consecutive year of record-breaking executions, surpassing the 345 recorded in 2024. Findings point to a deliberate expansion of capital punishment rather than isolated judicial outcomes, raising urgent concerns about state policy, due process, and international accountability.
Patterns emerging from the data show executions no longer confined to cases involving lethal violence. Authorities increasingly applied the death penalty to non-lethal drug offenses, a move that contradicts international legal standards limiting capital punishment to the most serious crimes.
Foreign Nationals And Drug Offenses Driving Execution Rates
Human rights organizations, including Reprieve and the European Saudi Organization for Human Rights, identified non-lethal drug charges as the primary driver of execution growth in 2025.
Out of those executed, at least 240 individuals were sentenced for drug-related offenses, with foreign nationals accounting for 188 of those deaths. Hashish-related charges alone led to 98 executions, highlighting disproportionate punishment that often intersects with migrant vulnerability and limited legal protections.
Consular access barriers, language limitations, and restricted legal representation continue to undermine fair trial guarantees for foreign defendants. These systemic deficiencies heighten the risk of wrongful convictions and coerced confessions, particularly in cases involving capital punishment.
Executions in 2025 included at least two individuals convicted of offenses allegedly committed while they were minors, a direct violation of international law. Abdullah al-Derazi was executed on October 20 for terrorism-related charges connected to protest activity. Alleged conduct occurred in 2012, when he was 17 years old and part of the Shia Muslim minority, a community long subjected to discriminatory enforcement and surveillance.
Jalal al-Labbad faced execution on August 21 after being arrested in 2017 for participating in demonstrations and funeral processions. Alleged offenses occurred when he was 15 years old. Reports from ESOHR indicate he endured torture during detention, raising further concerns about coerced testimony and judicial abuse.
International law establishes an absolute ban on capital punishment for crimes committed by minors under the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which Saudi Arabia ratified. Obligations under this treaty prohibit execution regardless of the nature of the offense or subsequent legal reclassification.
Targeting Dissent And Press Freedom
Execution of journalist Turki al-Jasser on June 14 intensified fears that capital punishment is being used to silence peaceful dissent. Al-Jasser was known for reporting on corruption within the royal family. Circumstances surrounding his conviction and execution reinforce long-standing concerns that counterterrorism laws are applied broadly to criminalize expression, journalism, and political criticism.
Use of the death penalty in such contexts undermines press freedom and violates protections for freedom of expression recognized under international human rights norms. Patterns suggest deterrence of dissent rather than the pursuit of justice.
International Law And Saudi Arabia Obligations
Saudi Arabia remains bound by the Arab Charter on Human Rights, which restricts capital punishment to the most serious crimes and requires strict procedural safeguards. Expansion of executions for drug offenses and protest-related activities conflicts directly with these commitments.
United Nations human rights mechanisms previously expressed grave concern following the end of a 21-month unofficial moratorium on drug-related executions in 2022. Developments in 2025 demonstrate that those warnings went unheeded, raising questions about the effectiveness of diplomatic engagement absent concrete consequences.
Global Accountability And Reputation Laundering
Human rights advocates increasingly call on governments, corporations, athletes, and cultural institutions to reassess partnerships with Saudi Arabia. International engagement without accountability risks legitimizing a system marked by arbitrary executions, discrimination, and repression.
Silence or symbolic concern fails to address structural abuse. Sustained diplomatic pressure, transparency demands, and consequences for violations remain central to preventing further escalation.
Key Takeaways
- Saudi Arabia carried out at least 356 executions in 2025, the highest annual total on record.
- Non-lethal drug offenses accounted for a majority of executions, disproportionately affecting foreign nationals.
- Authorities executed individuals for crimes allegedly committed while they were minors, violating international law.
- Capital punishment increasingly targets protest activity, journalism, and dissent.
- Saudi Arabia’s actions conflict with obligations under international human rights treaties.
- Global actors face growing pressure to link engagement with accountability.
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