Amnesty International has revealed that 34 foreign nationals, including Nigerians, were executed in Saudi Arabia in June 2025 for drug-related offences.
In a press release issued on Monday, Amnesty’s Deputy Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, Kristine Beckerle, disclosed that those executed came from countries such as Nigeria, Egypt, Ethiopia, Jordan, Pakistan, Somalia, and Syria.
According to the rights group, Saudi Arabia has already carried out 180 executions between January and June 2025 alone. Beckerle added that the kingdom recorded 345 executions in 2024—the highest number Amnesty has documented in over 30 years.
Between January 2014 and June 2025, at least 32 Nigerians were executed in Saudi Arabia for drug-related crimes, alongside 66 Syrians, 22 Somalis, 155 Pakistanis, 50 Jordanians, 39 Yemenis, 33 Egyptians, and 13 Ethiopians, the report stated.
Amnesty noted that out of the 597 individuals executed for drug offences during that ten-year period, nearly 75 percent were foreign nationals.
Beckerle condemned the executions, stating, “Saudi Arabia’s relentless and ruthless use of the death penalty after grossly unfair trials not only demonstrates a chilling disregard for human life, but its use for drug-related offences also violates international legal standards.”
She described the pattern as alarming, saying it reflects a disturbing reality behind the kingdom’s efforts to portray a modern, reformist image to the international community.
“The execution of foreign nationals for drug-related offences—crimes that should not even warrant the death penalty—is truly horrifying,” she said.
