Overview
- An AFP tally shows 356 people were put to death in 2025, surpassing the previous record of 338 in 2024 for a second straight annual high.
- Official data attribute 243 executions last year to drug-related offenses, with many cases carried out after completing court proceedings.
- Rights groups, including Reprieve, say a large share involved non-lethal drug offenses and report that more than half of those executed were foreign nationals.
- Saudi authorities defend capital punishment as necessary for public order and say death sentences proceed only after all appeals are exhausted.
- The campaign has included expanded checkpoints and major drug seizures, set against strong domestic demand for Captagon linked by the UN to regional trafficking networks.