The world hit a 44-year high in executions

Governments around the world executed more people in 2025 than at any point since 1981, according to a report by Amnesty International released on Tuesday, marking a stark reversal of a decades-long decline in state-sanctioned killing. The human rights organisation documented at least 2,474 executions in 20 countries, a 30% increase from the previous year and the highest annual total since global tracking began in 1981. The surge was driven primarily by a surge in executions in the Middle East and North Africa, particularly in Iran, Saudi Arabia and Iraq, which together accounted for 85% of the global total. In Iran alone, authorities carried out over 1,000 executions, many for drug-related offences, while Saudi Arabia increased its use of the death penalty for terrorism-related crimes, including the execution of 81 people in a single day in March.

The sharp rise in executions comes amid a broader erosion of human rights safeguards in several countries, where governments have cited national security and crime control as justification for expanding the use of capital punishment. Iran, for instance, resumed public executions in 2024 and has intensified crackdowns on dissent, with many of those executed in 2025 having been convicted in proceedings widely criticised as unfair. Saudi Arabia, despite recent economic reforms aimed at attracting foreign investment, has continued to impose the death penalty for a wide range of offences, including blasphemy and adultery, drawing condemnation from the United Nations and European Union. The trend is not limited to authoritarian regimes; in the United States, several states have reintroduced or expanded the use of lethal injection, while in China, believed to be the world’s leading executioner, data remains classified but is thought to have risen alongside tighter state controls.

The increase in executions has drawn sharp criticism from international observers and advocacy groups, who argue that the death penalty violates fundamental human rights and has not been proven to deter crime. Amnesty International’s secretary-general, Agnès Callamard, described the figures as “an alarming escalation” and called on governments to impose immediate moratoriums on executions. The European Union, which has long opposed capital punishment, reiterated its stance that the death penalty is “cruel and inhuman” and has threatened to reconsider diplomatic relations with countries that persist in its use. Meanwhile, in Africa, where several nations have moved toward abolition in recent years, the rise in executions elsewhere has raised concerns about a potential regional backslide.

Analysts warn that the global increase in executions may reflect a broader trend of shrinking civic space and weakening adherence to international law, particularly in countries facing economic or political instability. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime has noted a correlation between rising executions and increased militarisation of law enforcement in several states, raising fears that the death penalty is being used as a tool of repression rather than justice. With no sign of abating, the 2025 figures underscore the urgent need for coordinated international action to reverse the tide before the global abolitionist movement loses further ground.