Law360 Canada (May 22, 2026, 9:36 AM EDT) --

Aubrey Harris

Amnesty International’s latest annual report on the global state of the death penalty paints a sobering picture.

A total of 2,707 executions were recorded in 2025. That’s a shocking 78 per cent increase over 2024. And it’s the highest global total recorded by Amnesty since 1981, when at least 3,191 executions took place.

Just 16 countries were responsible for the more than 2,700 executions recorded in 2025. That number excludes China, which is believed to execute thousands of people per year and for which reliable numbers are not available.

Iran saw a dramatic rise in executions — at least 2,159, more than doubling the 2024 figure of at least 972. The death penalty continued to be weaponized to instil fear among the population, crush dissent and punish marginalized communities, after grossly unfair trials. Significant increases were also recorded in Egypt, Singapore, Kuwait and the United States.

In addition, Saudi Arabia surpassed the record-high figure of 2024 (at least 356 in 2025, up from at least 345 in 2024) amid the continued use of executions to punish drug-related offences. Executions for drug-related offences are banned under article 6 of the 1966 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Yet, in 2025, close to half (1,257, or 46 per cent) of all known executions globally were for drug-related offences.

Amnesty International’s annual report on Death Sentences And Executions includes only verified execution figures and therefore the true number may be much higher.

However, there is still reason for hope. Despite the rise in executions, the global movement toward clemency and abolition tallied several notable breakthroughs last year, including:

• Vietnam abolished the death penalty for eight offences, including drug transportation, bribery and embezzlement.
• Gambia abolished the death penalty for the crimes of murder, treason and other offences against the state.
• In a historic move, the Governor of Alabama, Kay Ivey, granted clemency to Rocky Myers. It was the first clemency granted to a Black person on death row — and only the second in the state — since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976.

Moreover, the movement toward the abolition of the death penalty is as strong as it has ever been. We are now only weeks away from marking 50 years since Canada abolished the death penalty from our Criminal Code. In 1976, when that historic change was made, just 28 countries had abolished the death penalty either fully or for “ordinary crimes.” Half a century later, 113 countries have abolished the death penalty. Canada has also ratified an international treaty forbidding the resumption of executions here. The progress is undeniable, even if there is still so much work to do.

A world without the death penalty is on the horizon, despite 2025’s rise in executions. Executing countries continue to be limited to a small group, and other indicators — such as record-low support for the death penalty in the United States and the continued decline in new death sentences there — point toward eventual abolition.

Amnesty International opposes the death penalty in all cases, regardless of the nature of the crime, characteristics of the offender or of the victim. We oppose the death penalty on the grounds that it is a fundamental violation of human rights as outlined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, including the right to life and the right not to be subjected to cruel or inhumane treatment or punishment.

Aubrey Harris is the co-ordinator in the Amnesty International Campaign to Abolish the Death Penalty, Canadian Section (English-Speaking Branch). He can be reached at dpacoordinator@amnesty.ca.

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