Saudi Arabia Carries Out Mass Execution Amidst Crackdown on Drug Trafficking

A total of seven people were executed in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, with five of the individuals put to death for their involvement in drug trafficking, according to a statement from the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA). This latest wave of executions brings the total number of people executed in the Gulf kingdom this year to 236.

Among the individuals executed were four Yemeni citizens – Yahya Lutfullah, Ali Azib, Ahmed Ali, and Salem Nahari – who were put to death in the southern province of Asir for smuggling hashish into the country. A Pakistani man also met the same fate on Wednesday for his role in drug trafficking, bringing the total number of executions for this crime to 71 this year.

The executions are part of Saudi Arabia’s efforts to combat the growing problem of drug trafficking in the kingdom. The country has become a major market for captagon, a highly addictive amphetamine drug that is flooding in from war-torn Syria and Lebanon. In response, Saudi authorities launched a high-profile anti-drug campaign last year, which has resulted in a significant increase in raids and arrests.

The use of the death penalty for drug-related offenses has been on the rise in Saudi Arabia since a moratorium on capital punishment for these cases was lifted two years ago. In addition to the five individuals executed for drug trafficking, two Saudi nationals were also put to death on Wednesday for murder.

Saudi Arabia’s use of the death penalty has been widely criticized by human rights groups, who argue that it is excessive and out of step with the kingdom’s efforts to present a more modern image on the world stage. Riyadh has countered that the death penalty is necessary to “maintain public order” and that sentences are only carried out after defendants have exhausted all levels of litigation.

According to Amnesty International, Saudi Arabia executed the third highest number of prisoners in the world in 2023, after China and Iran. The organization has been tracking annual execution figures since 1990 and has repeatedly expressed concern over Saudi Arabia’s use of the death penalty.