Saudi Arabia has executed 340 people so far this year, surpassing the record of 338 executions set in 2024.
The Ministry of Interior announced on Monday that three Saudis convicted of murdering a Sudanese national were executed in Mecca, bringing this year’s tally to 340.
Amnesty International ranked Saudi Arabia as the world’s third-highest executor of prisoners in 2024, after China and Iran. The organisation has been tracking executions in the Gulf kingdom, which enforces strict interpretations of Islamic law, since 1990.
This year’s number of executions marks the highest annual figure since executions began being publicly documented in the early 1990s.
Experts say the kingdom’s accelerated use of capital punishment is largely driven by its intensified anti-drug crackdown. Saudi Arabia launched a major campaign in 2023 targeting drug trafficking and the rising consumption of captagon, an amphetamine widely used in the Middle East.
The UN identifies Saudi Arabia as one of the largest markets for the drug. Captagon addiction has reportedly surged in the region, prompting stricter enforcement measures.
Since the start of 2025, 232 individuals have been executed for drug-related offences, making up the majority of this year’s 340 executions. In 2024, drug crimes accounted for 117 of the 338 recorded executions.
Foreign nationals have been disproportionately affected during this campaign. Of the 193 foreigners executed so far in 2025, 182 were convicted of drug-related crimes.
