Behind the carefully constructed image of modernity and reform, the death penalty has not receded. It has intensified.
Based on Human Rights Watch Report2,000+ executions in 10 years
It is six in the morning. Inside a Saudi prison, a man is waiting. He does not fully understand the language in which he was judged. He did not have access to a proper lawyer. His family is far away, sometimes thousands of miles away. A few hours later, he will be executed. His name will not make headlines. His story will disappear into a statistic.
This is where the reality begins.
2,000+Executions in 10 Years
1,000First 1,000: 6 yearsNext 1,000: Only 4 years
~50%Foreign Nationals Executed
The Accelerating Pace
More than 2,000 executions in ten years. This threshold, recently crossed, marks a turning point. According to the report of the non-governmental organization Human Rights Watch, this increase is not gradual—it is accelerating. It took six years to reach the first 1,000 executions since 2015. The next 1,000 were carried out in just four years. That pace says everything.
This is no longer a system using an extreme punishment with restraint. It is a system that has normalized it, expanded it, and integrated it into its governing logic.
The Contradiction of Modernity
And yet, at the very same time, Saudi Arabia presents itself as a country in transformation. Major economic projects, cultural opening, global diplomacy: under the leadership of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the Kingdom is crafting an image of modernity and reform. This is where the contradiction lies. Because behind that carefully constructed image, the death penalty has not receded. It has intensified.
Crimes and Punishments
According to Human Rights Watch, a majority of executions do not involve the “most serious crimes.” Drug-related offenses alone account for a significant share of death sentences. Non-violent acts—sometimes minor by international standards—lead to irreversible punishment. The logic of deterrence appears to have replaced the logic of justice.
Politically Motivated Accusations
Even more troubling, some executions are linked to politically motivated accusations. Individuals prosecuted for their opinions, expressions, or perceived dissent are tried within a judicial framework where ambiguity prevails. The use of discretionary sentencing allows the death penalty to be extended to cases that, elsewhere, would fall under freedom of expression or public debate.
A System Without Safeguards
Within such a system, judges hold immense power with limited oversight. Opaque procedures, restricted access to legal defense, and a lack of transparency reinforce a growing perception of arbitrariness. The issue is not only the death penalty itself—it is the entire system that produces it.
The Invisible Victims: Migrant Workers
Then there are those we hear about the least: migrant workers. Nearly half of those executed are foreign nationals. They come from Asia, Africa, and beyond. They work in construction, domestic service, and other vulnerable sectors.
- No translation during proceedings
- No effective legal assistance
- No support networks
When they are arrested, they are thrown into a system they do not understand. Without translation, without effective legal assistance, without support networks, they become the most exposed, the most vulnerable, the most invisible.
Broken Promises
The report also highlights a deeply disturbing contradiction: the continued execution of individuals convicted for crimes committed as minors. Despite official commitments to end such practices, documented cases show that it has not entirely stopped. This is not merely a failure of implementation. It reveals a profound gap between political promises and judicial reality.
Timeline of Broken Commitments
2021
Authorities suggested a moratorium on executions for drug-related offenses.
2022-2025
Executions resumed at scale, reaching record levels.
Europe’s Complicity
The international response remains uneasy. Human rights organizations continue to document and condemn these developments. But major powers continue to engage, invest, and cooperate. Europe, in particular, finds itself in a position of contradiction. It claims to uphold human rights as a foundational value, while simultaneously strengthening economic and strategic ties with Riyadh.
Can one condemn the death penalty in international forums while deepening partnerships with a state that is expanding its use? Can values be defended without accepting the political cost of consistency?
The Uncomfortable Truth
Comparisons are often made with other countries. Yes, Iran, China, and others also carry out executions on a large scale. But Saudi Arabia presents a unique case: it is actively seeking to redefine its global image, attract investment, and position itself as a central actor in the global order. Such ambition carries higher expectations. The more a country seeks influence, the more it is judged by its adherence to fundamental norms.
Is Saudi Arabia truly transforming its system, or simply transforming its image?
Because behind every execution, there is an irreversible human reality. A life ended. A family shattered. A story erased. The 2,000 are not an abstract number. They are 2,000 destinies.
Modernity cannot be measured by skyscrapers, global events, or foreign investment. It is measured by how a state treats its most vulnerable, its most silent, its most forgotten.
Today, in Saudi Arabia, the death penalty is not a relic of the past. It is an instrument of the present.
And as long as this reality persists, no communication strategy—no matter how sophisticated—will be able to conceal what has become an uncomfortable truth: an image can be modernized, but a justice system that kills cannot be hidden forever.
Source: Human Rights Watch Report | Analysis based on documented executions since 2015
