Surge in Global Executions Signals Alarming Trends, Amnesty Report Reveals

The latest Amnesty International report indicates that global executions have hit a decade high, with over 1,500 executions recorded in 2024. Despite only 15 countries still practicing the death penalty, nations like Iran, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia account for a large portion of these executions.

The global landscape of capital punishment has taken a grim turn, as Amnesty International's recent report reveals that the number of state executions reached its highest level in ten years in 2024. More than 1,500 executions were documented, with Iran, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia responsible for a staggering 1,380 of these cases, while the United States executed 25 individuals.

Despite the surge, the overall number of countries employing the death penalty has fallen to just 15, marking the lowest figure on record for the second consecutive year. Amnesty's Secretary General, Agnes Callamard, highlighted a significant shift in attitude towards capital punishment, stating that "the tide is turning" and emphasizing the growing global movement against the death penalty.

Though these statistics represent the highest index of executions since 2015, which recorded at least 1,634 executions, the actual numbers may be even higher. Amnesty has excluded potential thousands of executions occurring in China, where the death penalty data is state secret, as well as executions in North Korea and Vietnam, for which no accessible statistics exist due to strict governmental restrictions.

The report, titled "Death Sentences and Executions 2024," attributed the surge in executions primarily to the twofold escalation in Iraq and Saudi Arabia's execution rates and the specific targeting of political dissidents and drug offenders. Iraq saw executions increase almost fourfold from at least 16 to at least 63, while Saudi Arabia's executions surged from 172 to at least 345. In Iran, the count rose from at least 853 to 972 in 2024.

Importantly, Amnesty International noted that over 40% of all executions this year were conducted for drug-related crimes, which it asserts violate human rights law due to their disproportionate application. Amidst the stark realities highlighted in the report, Zimbabwe has made strides in reducing state-sanctioned deaths, recently enacting a law abolishing the death penalty for ordinary crimes. Furthermore, recent developments have seen two death row inmates, one in Japan and another in the US, being granted clemency.

In a positive sign for the anti-death penalty movement, more than two-thirds of all UN member states voted in favor of a moratorium on capital punishment last year. As the world grapples with the implications of these findings, the fight against the death penalty continues to evolve.