2020: ~27 executions (pandemic-related lull), per Amnesty International. 2021: ~65 executions, per Reprieve (2023). 2022: 196 executions, a 30-year high, per Amnesty International. 2023: 172 executions, per Human Rights Watch (2024). 2024: 330 executions, the highest in decades, including 122 for drug offenses, per Reuters and Reprieve. 2025 (to June): At least 345 executions, with 122 drug-related, per Amnesty International
A couple of cases. One in 2024. A 54-year-old retired teacher was sentenced to death by the Specialized Criminal Court for tweets and YouTube activity criticizing government policies One in 2025 where a journalist was executed for criticizing the government (about two weeks ago actually) Saudi journalist tweeted against the government – and was executed for ‘high treason’ https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jun/18/saudi-arabia-turki-al-jasser-executed
Then we have that whole inequality thing. I mean how can you hav equality in a country that operates under Sharia law, right? Saudi Arabia operates under a Sharia-based legal system (Hanbali school) and a male guardianship system, which, despite reforms, restricts women’s autonomy in marriage, divorce, custody, and travel, per Amnesty International (2025). The 2022 Personal Status Law (PSL) codifies gender-based discrimination, per. Women face arbitrary arrests, lengthy prison terms, and torture for activism or expression, often under vague anti-terrorism or Sharia-based charges, per Human Rights Watch (HRW) (2024).
Saudi Arabia supports HTS (ya know, the guys in Sria that are running around mass murdering Christians). Saudi Arabiacontinues to export Wahhabism fueling extremism globally, inspiring groups like ISIS and al-Qaeda . Saudi-based charities, some with royal family ties, have been accused of diverting funds to terrorist groups like al-Qaeda
Human Rights Watch (HRW), a leading international NGO, has a critical view of Saudi Arabia’s human rights record, documenting systemic abuses, repression, and violations of international law based on its research. All the way up till now.
Wow. Saudi Arabia surely sounds like a modern and progressive society.
