Executions worldwide rose to their highest level since 1981 last year, with 2,707 people put to death across 17 countries, Amnesty International said on Monday. The surge, driven largely by Iran, marks a 78 percent increase from the previous year.
Issued on: 18/05/2026 - 15:22
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The UK-based rights group said Iran carried out 2,159 executions in 2025, more than double the previous year’s total and the country’s highest figure since 1981. Amnesty said the rise reflected a broader trend in countries where authorities had tightened control by restricting civic freedoms and silencing dissent. “This trend was strongest in countries where the authorities have tightened their grip on power by restricting civic space, silencing dissent and displaying disregard for protections established under international human rights law and standards,” the organisation said. The group said Iranian authorities intensified their use of the death penalty “as a tool of political repression and control” after the June 2025 war with Israel. Death penalty abolitionist Robert Badinter joins France's Pantheon heroes China excluded Amnesty said its figures did not include the thousands of executions it believed were carried out in China because state secrecy prevented reliable data collection. “Amnesty International continues to consider China as the world’s leading executioner,” it said. Amnesty and other rights groups have also said Iran stepped up its use of the death penalty again in 2026 after January protests and the war against Israel and the United States. The executions followed prosecutions linked to the protests and membership of banned groups. Saudi Arabia carried out at least 356 executions in 2025, surpassing its previous record high of at least 345 in 2024, Amnesty said. ‘Fear of death doesn't deter violent crime,’ experts say as executions rise Regional rises Executions in Kuwait rose from six in 2024 to 17 in 2025, while Egypt’s total nearly doubled from 13 to 23, Amnesty said. In Yemen, executions increased from at least 38 to at least 51. The United States – the only country in the Americas to carry out executions in 2025 – put 47 people to death, the highest figure since 2009, Amnesty said. Singapore carried out 17 executions, the country’s highest number since 2003, the group added. Amnesty said China’s use of the death penalty showed “an intentional use to send a message that the state would not tolerate threats to public security or stability”. (with newswires)
