Death Penalty News

Muscat: Oman has enacted a new Law on Combating Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances under Royal Decree No. 67/2026, introducing severe penalties for drug trafficking, smuggling, possession and personal use, including the death penalty and life imprisonment in certain cases. Under the new law, importing, exporting, producing, or manufacturing narcotic drugs or psychotropic substances for the purpose of trafficking is punishable by imprisonment and a fine ranging from RO 35,000 to RO 60,000. The death penalty applies to drug smuggling carried out for the purpose of trafficking in specified aggravated circumstances, including repeat offences, abuse of official authority, licences or legal immunity, using a person lacking legal capacity or with diminished capacity, and participation in or cooperation with international gangs involved in drug smuggling.

Egyptian television presenter Sarah Khalifa and 11 others have been sentenced to death by hanging after being convicted of drug trafficking and rape, while nine defendants received life sentences and seven were acquitted. Egyptian television presenter Sarah Khalifa, 39, has been sentenced to death by hanging along with 11 other defendants after being found guilty in a drugs case involving a criminal gang accused of importing ingredients used to manufacture narcotics for sale.

In March, the Knesset approved legislation that calls for the execution of Palestinians convicted by a military court of killing Israelis Israeli authorities are preparing a prison wing—replete with an execution chamber—designated specifically for Palestinian prisoners convicted of murder, Israel’s i24NEWS channel reported Tuesday. The move comes after the Knesset (Israel’s parliament) approved legislation in March that calls for the execution of Palestinian prisoners convicted by a military court of murdering Israelis.

Ammon News—A Syrian court on Tuesday handed a death sentence to Wassim al-Assad, who appeared in the dock, a cousin of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad, who was himself sentenced to death in absentia last week. The 46-year-old relative of al-Assad was convicted over atrocities committed under his cousin’s rule during the country’s nearly 14-year civil war. Judge Fakhr al-Din al-Aryan said Assad’s cousin was convicted of multiple murders and “murder accompanied by torture and brutality... classified as crimes against humanity and war crimes,” adding that “he is therefore sentenced to death.”

Lebanon’s parliament on Tuesday abolished the death penalty, making it the first country in the Middle East to replace capital punishment with a sentence of life imprisonment with hard labour.  The majority of Lebanon's 128-member parliament voted in favour of ending the death penalty, with the exception of the parliamentary bloc of Hezbollah.  Justice Minister Adel Nassar called the abolition "historic," adding that the spectre of capital punishment had previously prevented Beirut from obtaining the extradition of suspects from countries where it has been outlawed.

DAMASCUS, Syria (DPN)— A Syrian court on Tuesday sentenced former President Bashar Assad and his younger brother, Maher Assad, to death in absentia for premeditated murder of multiple people including children; torture; arbitrary detention, and crimes against humanity committed during Syria’s conflict. The Fourth Criminal Court in Damascus also sentenced Atef Najib, Assad’s maternal cousin and former head of Political Security in the southern province of Daraa, to death. Najib appeared in court wearing a prisoner’s uniform and standing inside a cage as the judge read the sentence. The court ordered that Bashar and Maher Assad be pursued internationally.

At Least 17 Executed for Non-Lethal Drug-Related Offenses in 2026 (Beirut) – Saudi authorities executed five Ethiopian migrants for nonlethal drug-related offenses on July 27, 2026, without due process, Human Rights Watch said today. Saudi authorities have executed at least 17 Ethiopian nationals since the beginning of 2026 on drug-related charges. At least 79 more remain at imminent risk of execution on similar charges. Saudi authorities have executed at least 116 people in 2026 as of July 27, according to the European Saudi Organization for Human Rights.

As public hearings gather pace in the trials of former officials from Syria’s ousted regime, families of victims and survivors of torture are anxiously awaiting the verdicts, with many calling for the defendants to receive the death penalty. Proceedings before the Fourth Criminal Court at Damascus’ Palace of Justice have accelerated since April 25, when the court opened the in-absentia trial of deposed President Bashar al-Assad, his brother Maher al-Assad, and several senior figures from the former regime. Former security chief Atef Najib also appeared before the court in handcuffs.

Riyadh (AsiaNews) – The Saudi authorities have granted a royal amnesty to around 2,000 Ethiopian prisoners who have been held in the country’s jails for some time. The news was announced by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Addis Ababa in a statement, which added that, following the decree issued by the authorities in Riyadh, Ethiopian officials have already begun the repatriation of the 1,971 compatriots who had been held in prison until now. However, whilst this news is being received with satisfaction and hope, the dramatic situation—both human and legal—of the many Ethiopian migrants detained on death row in Saudi Arabia remains unresolved, as they await the carrying out of the death penalty amidst suffering and false hopes.

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - Nearly four decades after the Anfal campaign left tens of thousands of Kurdish families searching for answers, Iraq's judicial process has reached another decisive moment. On Thursday, the Federal Court of Appeals upheld the death sentence imposed on Ajaj Ahmed Hardan al-Tikriti, a former Baath-era prison official convicted of genocide, crimes against humanity, sexual violence, and the murder of Kurdish detainees held at the notorious Nugra Salman prison in 1988.

Brooke George from Gravesend, Kent, is accused of stabbing the man to death with a kitchen knife after they met on Facebook Brooke George, 23, from Gravesend, Kent is accused of killing a fellow Brit with a kitchen knife. According to campaign group Detained in Dubai, George stabbed him to death in an act of self defence. Radha Stirling, CEO of Detained in Dubai, said: “She reached for a knife after being attacked. Authorities must treat her as a domestic violence survivor while they investigate.”

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.

Government says men were involved in terror and drug cases between 2014 and 2022; over 100 remain on death row, Amman says executions to proceed ‘one by one’ Jordan hanged on Sunday six men convicted of killing security personnel, a government official said, ending a nine-year moratorium on the use of the death penalty. Government spokesman Mohammad Momani said in a statement that the men had been convicted in “terrorism and criminal cases” that led to the deaths and injuries of police officers and soldiers. According to the Jordanian Roya News outlet, the executions were carried out at dawn Sunday. Two of the men were involved in a 2018 case in the city of Salt, where six security officers were killed during a raid, the Jordanian government said.

Dubai: Kuwait has executed five men convicted of murder and other serious crimes after their death sentences were upheld by the country's highest courts and ratified by the Emir, the Public Prosecution said. The executions were carried out by hanging at the Central Prison after all legal procedures had been completed, according to a statement carried by local media. The public prosecution said the convicts had been granted all constitutional guarantees, including the right to defense and appeal throughout the investigation and trial process. 

The fiancée of an Egyptian man who is facing trial over converting to Christianity has issued an urgent appeal for journalists to “break the silence” over what she describes as “state-sanctioned religious persecution”. Thirty-year-old Said Mansour Rezk Abdelrazek is due to stand trial at Egypt’s Terrorism Circuit Court on 15th June and faces a potential life imprisonment or death sentence. He is officially recorded as an international religious prisoner of conscience by the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF).

A Jordanian court sentenced a citizen to death by hanging on Sunday after he was convicted of killing three drug enforcement agents during a raid earlier this year. The Jordanian state security court said, in a statement, that it “unanimously issued its final ruling on Sunday in the case concerning the martyrdom of three members of the anti-narcotics administration”. It said the accused was found guilty of charges including “physically assaulting officials charged with enforcing the narcotics law, resulting in death… and consequently sentenced him to the most severe punishment, which is the death penalty”.

A decade on from reforms to its religious police, Saudi Arabia might not be quite as tough as it once was on its Christian population, but it remains one of the toughest places in the world to believe in Jesus. In its annual ranking of global persecutors, Open Doors places Saudi Arabia as the 13th worst country for the persecution of Christians. While foreign-born Christians of a certain status are able to enjoy a very limited amount of religious freedom, the situation is far worse for those lower down in society and for native-born Saudis who wish to follow Christ.

The death penalty law for West Bank Palestinians convicted of deadly acts of terrorism came into effect Sunday night, after the commander of the IDF Central Command, Maj. Gen Avi Bluth, signed the military order necessary to enact the measure in the territory. The order requires that a military court presiding over the prosecution of terrorists whose attacks resulted in the death of a victim apply the death penalty alone as the only available sentence, unless the court finds special circumstances allowing for life imprisonment. Following the passage of the legislation at the end of March, Defense Minister Israel Katz requested that Bluth approve the military order, which he did on Sunday.

Kuwait appeal court upholds death sentences for three Iranians in drug case Kuwait’s Court of Appeal has upheld death sentences handed to three Iranian nationals convicted of attempting to smuggle large quantities of drugs into the country, local media reported. The ruling confirmed an earlier verdict by the Criminal Court, which found the three men guilty of trying to traffic more than 120 kilograms of hashish and 10,000 psychotropic pills.

The Shubra El Kheima Criminal Court has sentenced the defendant in the killing of Mirna Gamal Abdel Tawab—widely known in the media as the “Khosous Girl”—to death by hanging.  The verdict was issued after receiving the opinion of the Dar Al-Ifta al-Misriyyah, which approved the implementation of the death penalty. The court concluded that the charges against the defendant were proven based on case files and official investigations, according to local reports.  The Public Prosecution charged the 26-year-old defendant, a ceramic tile worker identified as “K.N.D.” from the Khosous area, with premeditated murder. Investigations revealed that he had planned the crime after the victim’s family rejected his proposal to marry her.