Amnesty: Saudi Arabia has executed nearly 100 people in 2026
Most for drug offences and many of them foreign nationals, with the total under King Salman now past 2,000 — as the kingdom courts the world on Vision 2030
Summary
Saudi Arabia executed 96 people between 1 January and 22 June 2026, with the latest on 18 June, per Amnesty International — on pace to challenge 2025's record 356. Of the 96, 61 were for drug offences; of those, 39 were foreign nationals and 22 Saudis. The foreign drug-offence executions included nationals of Ethiopia (7), Pakistan (7), Sudan (5), Jordan (4) and Syria (3). The cumulative total under King Salman passed 2,000 by April. Amnesty and Human Rights Watch demand a new moratorium, noting the drug-execution moratorium lifted in November 2022 has driven the surge. The figures sit awkwardly beside the Vision 2030 opening — the 2034 World Cup, tourism, foreign investment — that Mohammed Bin Salman is selling to the same world whose nationals are among the executed.
By the numbers
- 96 — executions 1 Jan-22 June 2026; latest 18 June.
- 61 / 39 — for drug offences / of those, foreign nationals.
- 356 — executions in 2025, a record.
- 2,000+ — cumulative total under King Salman, passed in April 2026.
Why it matters
The execution rate is the sharpest contradiction in the Vision 2030 sell: a kingdom marketing openness while executing foreign drug-offenders at record pace. It complicates the World Cup labour-rights file and gives Western governments a recurring human-rights problem even as they deepen defence and AI ties with Riyadh.
What to watch
- Whether 2026 surpasses the 2025 record by year-end.
- Any response from the governments whose nationals are executed.
- Pressure tied to the 2034 World Cup and foreign-investment drive.