Saudi Arabia executed at least 356 people in 2025, setting a new record for the highest number of executions carried out in a single year, according to official data and independent tallies.

The sharp rise has been widely attributed to the kingdom’s intensified “war on drugs,” which has seen a growing number of death sentences handed down for narcotics-related crimes, many involving foreign nationals.

Figures compiled from official Saudi statements and tracked by Agence France-Presse show that 243 of those executed in 2025 were convicted in drug-related cases alone.

The total marks a significant increase from 2024, when authorities carried out 338 executions, itself a record-breaking year that drew widespread international criticism.

Saudi Arabia resumed executions for drug offences in late 2022, ending a roughly three-year pause during which the death penalty for narcotics crimes had largely been suspended.

Since then, analysts say cases that had been moving slowly through the judicial system reached their final stages, resulting in a surge of executions in consecutive years.

The Gulf kingdom is a major destination for illicit drugs, particularly fenethylline, a synthetic stimulant better known as Captagon, which the United Nations has described as a key regional narcotics trade.

Captagon was previously Syria’s largest export under former president Bashar al-Assad, and Saudi officials say the drug has fueled addiction and crime within the kingdom.

In response, Saudi authorities have expanded security operations, increasing police checkpoints along highways and at border crossings, and reporting repeated seizures of millions of pills.

Dozens of alleged traffickers have been arrested in these operations, with prosecutors frequently seeking the harshest penalties available under Saudi law.

Rights groups say the renewed use of capital punishment for drug offences has disproportionately affected foreign nationals, many of whom face language barriers and limited access to legal support.

Accounts from families and activists have described last-minute phone calls from prisoners informing relatives of imminent executions, sometimes only days or hours in advance.

Amnesty International and other organisations have condemned the scale of executions, calling them excessive and incompatible with international human rights standards.

They argue that drug-related crimes do not meet the threshold of “most serious crimes” under international law, which restricts the use of the death penalty.

Critics also say the practice stands in stark contrast to Saudi Arabia’s efforts to project a more modern and tolerant image under the Vision 2030 reform programme.

The ambitious agenda, overseen by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, aims to diversify the oil-dependent economy and attract foreign investment and tourism.

Saudi Arabia has poured billions of dollars into entertainment, tourism infrastructure, and global sporting events, including securing the right to host the 2034 football World Cup.

Activists warn that the surge in executions risks undermining these efforts, reinforcing perceptions of authoritarianism and weakening the kingdom’s global standing.

Saudi authorities have consistently defended the use of the death penalty, arguing it is essential for maintaining public order and deterring serious crime.

Officials insist that capital punishment is imposed only after lengthy legal processes and once all avenues of appeal have been exhausted.

They also argue that harsh penalties are necessary to combat drug trafficking networks that threaten social stability and public health.

Amnesty International has been documenting executions in Saudi Arabia since 1990, noting that reliable figures from earlier decades are difficult to verify.

The organisation says the recent spike represents one of the most significant escalations in the use of capital punishment anywhere in the world.

As Saudi Arabia presses ahead with its anti-drug campaign, rights groups are calling on the kingdom to halt executions and review its use of the death penalty.

For now, the record-breaking figures from 2025 underscore a widening gap between Riyadh’s reform rhetoric and its continued reliance on capital punishment.