Halfway through the year, Saudi Arabia has already executed nearly 100 people

Almost 100 people executed so far this year as dozens more remain on death row for drug-related offences

Saudi Arabian authorities have executed nearly 100 people so far this year, including at least 61 for drug-related offences, the latest of which was on 18 June. In response, Dana Ahmed, Middle East Researcher at Amnesty International, said today:

“It is halfway through the year and Saudi Arabia has executed nearly 100 people, a grim milestone exposing the authorities’ unconscionable and unlawful use of the death penalty. Of the 96 people put to death already in 2026, an astounding 61 were executed for drug-related offences; 39 of them were foreign nationals and 22 Saudi nationals.

“At a time when governments and international institutions are increasingly acknowledging the need to promote evidence-based and rights-respecting responses to drug-related issues, Saudi Arabia continues to execute people for offences that should never be punished by death under international law and standards. Instead of reflecting on the human cost of their harshly punitive policies, the Saudi authorities continue to carry out executions at an alarming rate, including for drug-related offences.

“Foreign nationals have borne the brunt of Saudi Arabia’s ruthless use of the death penalty for drug-related offences, frequently after grossly unfair trials. It is profoundly alarming that at least 63 Ethiopian nationals, held in a single ward of Khamis Mushait detention facility in south-west Saudi Arabia, may be at imminent risk of execution solely for drug-related offences. Concerns for their safety have heightened after seven Ethiopians were executed earlier this year – all for ‘smuggling hashish’.

“Saudi Arabia’s execution spree reflects a dangerous global trend in which punitive drug policies are increasingly driving the use of the death penalty. The international community must speak out unequivocally against these unlawful executions, and Saudi Arabia must immediately establish a moratorium on the use of this cruel and irreversible punishment as a first critical step towards abolition.”

Background

Between 1 January and 22 June 2026, Saudi Arabia carried out 96 executions, 61 for drug-related offences. Of those executed for drug-related offences, 39 were foreign nationals from Ethiopia (7), Pakistan (7), Sudan (5), Jordan (4) and Syria (3) amongst other nationalities. Twenty-two were Saudi nationals.

Saudi Arabia remains one of the world’s leading executioners. Amnesty International recorded at least 356 executions in 2025 alone, doubling the corresponding total for 2024 (122).

Between January 2014 and June 2026, the authorities executed 2,084 people. Foreign nationals have been disproportionately affected, accounting for 75% of drug-related executions in 2024 and 78% in 2025.

Amnesty International opposes the death penalty in all cases without exception regardless of the nature or circumstances of the crime; guilt, innocence or other characteristics of the individual; or the method used by the state to carry out the execution. The organization campaigns for total abolition of the death penalty.

Source: Amnesty International, Staff, June 22, 2026

"One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed,
but by the punishments that the good have inflicted."
— Oscar Wilde

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