Iran responsible for 64% of global executions in 2024, says Amnesty

Iran accounted for 64% of all known global executions in 2024, with at least 972 people executed, according to Amnesty International, in what the rights group says is the government's ongoing campaign of mass suppression of dissent.

The latest figures show an increase of 119 executions from the previous year, when 853 executions were recorded.

Globally, the total number of recorded executions reached 1,518 in 2024, the highest figure since 2015, according to Amnesty International’s annual report on the global use of the death penalty released on Tuesday.

Iran, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia were responsible for an overwhelming 91% of the known global executions, a sharp rise from the previous year's 89%.

“Those who dare challenge authorities have faced the most cruel of punishments, particularly in Iran and Saudi Arabia, with the death penalty used to silence those brave enough to speak out,” said Agnès Callamard, Amnesty International’s Secretary General.

Amnesty said that the vast majority of the executions in Iran last year were linked to political repression, including those involved in the Woman Life Freedom protests sparked by the death in custody of 22 year old Mahsa Amini over alleged hijab law violations.

“In 2024, Iran persisted in their use of the death penalty to punish individuals who had challenged the Islamic Republic establishment during the Woman Life Freedom uprising.

"Last year saw two of those people – including a youth with a mental disability – executed in connection with the uprising following unfair trials and torture-tainted ‘confessions’, proving how far the authorities are willing to go to tighten their grip on power,” Callamard added.

According to Amnesty's report, in 2024, Iran executed 30 women, four individuals for crimes committed when they were under 18, and four people in public.

Over 40% of global executions in 2024 were for drug crimes, a practice Amnesty has criticized as unlawful and ineffective, as international human rights law restricts the death penalty to the “most serious crimes.”

“Drug-related executions were prevalent in China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Singapore and, while no confirmation was possible, likely Viet Nam. In many contexts, sentencing people to death for drug-related offences has been found to disproportionately impact those from disadvantaged backgrounds, while it has no proven effect in reducing drug trafficking,” said Callamard.

Amnesty said that the figures reported in its annual report do not include the thousands of executions believed to have occurred in China, which it named the world’s leading executioner, nor those in North Korea and Vietnam, where the death penalty is also extensively used.