Saudi Arabia executed 184 people last year, Reprieve announced, among which 88 Saudis, 90 foreigners, and 6 of unknown origins. With 184, 2019 saw 35 more executions than 2018. Among the executed, at least 3 kids.
Reprieve, basing its numbers on the Saudi Press Agency official execution announcements, reports a steady increase in execution numbers since 2015, regardless of crown prince’s promises of 2018. Additionally, Saudi Arabia does not respect the right to a fair trial, with credible allegations of convictions based on forced confessions extorted through torture. So far, in 2020, Saudi Arabia executed four people.
The worst happened on April 23, when 37 people were executed in a single day. This Saudi Arabia is the host of the next G20, now planned for November in Riyadh. This week, Saudi Arabia hosts the Civil 20 (C20), the meeting of the NGOs of the G20 countries. CIVICUS, Amnesty International, and Transparency International announced that they will not attend the event, boycotting the C20 because it is held in a state guilty of egregious human rights abuses.
The European Centre for Democracy and Human Rights (ECDHR) stands firm against the death penalty as inhuman and degrading punishment and condemns Saudi Arabia’s increasing execution numbers as a clear violation of human rights.