Saudi Arabia executed over 100 foreigners since early 2025

Saudi Arabia has executed more than 100 foreigners since the beginning of 2025, most of whom were convicted in drug-related cases, according to an AFP tally published on Thursday based on official announcements. The figures were described by international human rights organisations as “horrifying”.

The Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported that “the death penalty was carried out as a disciplinary punishment against the offenders Khalil Qasim Mohammed Omar and Murad Yaqoub Adam Siyo – both Ethiopian nationals – on Thursday in the Najran region in the south of the Kingdom,” after they were convicted of “smuggling hashish into the country”.

This brings the total number of foreigners executed in the Kingdom since January 2025 to 101, with 93 of them sentenced for drug-related offences. In total, Saudi Arabia has carried out 189 executions since the start of this year.

According to Amnesty International, Saudi Arabia ranked as the world’s third-highest executioner in both 2022 and 2023, following China and Iran.

The Kingdom executed a record 338 people in 2024, including 129 foreigners – also the highest number on record. In 2023, as in the previous year, Saudi authorities executed 34 foreign nationals.

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