Global Executions Hit Highest Level Since 1981

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5 hours ago
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This article is published in collaboration with Statista

by Anna Fleck

Amnesty International recorded 2,707 executions under the death penalty worldwide in 2025, marking an increase of 78 percent since the year before when 1,518 people were put to death. This marks the highest execution level since 1981.

The sharp rise was largely driven by Iran, which recorded its highest number of executions in decades at 2,159. Saudi Arabia put at least 356 people to death, exceeding their record-high figure of 2024. This was largely over drug offenses, as well as on broadly-defined terrorism charges, with many cases impacting those belonging to the country’s Shia minority. In Yemen at least 51 people were executed under death sentence, while in the United States, 2025 saw 47 executions nationwide, marking a large jump up from the 25 put to death the year before. Nineteen of these cases took place in Florida.

Last year, 1,257 executions were known to have been carried out unlawfully for drug-related offenses, including in countries such as China, Iran, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Singapore. Meanwhile, at least three people were executed for crimes that took place when they were below 18 years old.

While the number of countries that carry out the death penalty has been generally falling, down from 40 nations in 1997 to 15 in 2024, it ticked up again last year to 17. The number of new death sentences imposed also rose year-on-year from 2,087 across 46 countries in 2024 to 2,334 across 48 countries in 2025. No figure was available for Palestine due to the ongoing armed conflict.

China is thought to be the most serious executioner, with deaths expected to be in their thousands. The following chart excludes these figures, however, as the secrecy of the state means that exact death count remains unknown. Figures are also unknown for North Korea and Vietnam, meaning that Amnesty’s total yearly figures represent the minimum values.

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