Last year, excluding China and North Korea, more than 1,500 executions were carried out worldwide, marking the highest number in nine years.
Amnesty International reported on the 8th, local time, that 1,518 executions were conducted worldwide in 2024, representing a 32% increase compared to 2023, and the highest since 1,634 executions in 2015.
The country with the highest number of executions last year was Iran, with 972 cases, which is an increase of more than 100 cases from the previous year.
During the same period, Saudi Arabia’s executions increased from 172 to 345, and Iraq’s from 15 to 63.
Combined, the execution numbers from Iran, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia accounted for 91% of the total.
In the United States, the number increased significantly from 1 execution in 2023 to 25 last year.
Amnesty reported that executions in countries like China, North Korea, and Vietnam, which are estimated to number in the thousands, were not included in the tally due to a lack of official data.
More than 40% of executions worldwide were related to drug-related crimes.
Amnesty pointed out that some countries are using executions as a tool against anti-government protesters and specific ethnic groups.
In Iran, death sentences are being used as a means to suppress protestors demanding women’s rights, while in Saudi Arabia, executions are reportedly being misused to silence opposition and oppress the minority Shia population.
Agnes Callamard, Amnesty’s Secretary General, criticized the death penalty as a “heinous crime that has no place in today’s world” and “the most cruel punishment aimed at silencing those who courageously resist authority.”
(Photo: Captured from Amnesty’s website, Yonhap News)