Saudi Arabia executes 21 Pakistanis for drug-related crimes

Saudi Arabia has executed over 100 foreigners, including 21 Pakistanis, mostly for drug-related crimes. The Kingdom has intensified executions for such offenses.

According to AFP, the rate of these executions has tripled compared to 2022 and 2023, during which Saudi authorities executed 34 foreigners convicted of various offences.

In 2024, the executed foreigners included 21 from Pakistan, 20 from Yemen, 14 from Syria, 10 from Nigeria, nine from Egypt, eight from Jordan, and seven from Ethiopia. 

three each were from Sudan, India, and Afghanistan, while one individual each was from Sri Lanka, Eritrea, and the Philippines.

The Kingdom has carried out a total of 274 executions so far this year, marking the highest number of executions in over three decades. This surpasses its previous records of 196 executions in 2022 and 195 in 2019.

However, Saudi Arabia has faced persistent criticism over its death penalty conviction, which the human rights group also have condemned. 

A Yemeni citizen was put to death in Saudi Arabia's southwestern region of Najran on November 16 for drug trafficking, the Saudi Press Agency reported. This execution brought the total count of foreign nationals executed in the Kingdom this year to 101.

Of the 92 individuals executed for drug-related crimes this year, 69 were foreigners.

Amnesty International reported that Saudi Arabia carried out the third-largest number of executions globally in 2023, following China and Iran.