The most recent execution took place on Saturday, November 16, in the southwestern region of Najran, where a Yemeni national was put to death for smuggling drugs into the country, as reported by the official Saudi Press Agency.
This brings the total number of foreigners executed this year to 101, a figure nearly three times higher than the 34 foreigners executed in both 2023 and 2022, based on AFP reports.
The European-Saudi Organisation for Human Rights (ESOHR), based in Berlin, noted that this year’s executions had already set a new record.
“This is the largest number of executions of foreigners in a single year. Saudi Arabia has never executed 100 foreigners in a year,” stated Taha al-Hajji, ESOHR’s legal director.
Saudi Arabia ranked third globally in executing prisoners in 2023, following China and Iran, according to Amnesty International.
In September, AFP reported that Saudi Arabia had carried out its highest number of executions in more than 30 years, surpassing its previous record of 196 in 2022 and 192 in 1995.
Executions have continued at a rapid pace, with a total of 274 executions recorded by AFP as of Sunday.
This year’s foreign executions include 21 from Pakistan, 20 from Yemen, 14 from Syria, 10 from Nigeria, nine from Egypt, eight from Jordan, and seven from Ethiopia. Other countries with executed nationals include Sudan, India, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Eritrea, and the Philippines.
Saudi Arabia ended a three-year moratorium on executing drug offenders in 2022, and executions for drug-related offenses have significantly contributed to the high numbers this year. Of the 92 drug-related executions so far in 2024, 69 involved foreigners, according to AFP.
Diplomats and human rights advocates assert that foreign defendants typically face significant barriers to fair trials, including limited access to court documents. Al-Hajji emphasized that foreigners are particularly vulnerable, often becoming victims of major drug traffickers and experiencing numerous violations from arrest to execution.
