Saudi Arabia has executed over 100 foreigners this year, marking a significant increase in the number of executions, according to a human rights group. Among those executed was a Filipino convicted of murder.
Data from Agence France-Presse (AFP) revealed this increase, noting that the execution count this year has tripled compared to the 34 foreigners executed in both 2023 and 2022. Just this past Saturday, a Yemeni national was executed in Najran, southwestern Saudi Arabia, for drug smuggling, as reported by the Saudi Press Agency.
In October, the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) confirmed the execution of a Filipino sentenced to death for murder. The DFA stated, “The Philippine government provided legal assistance and exhausted all possible remedies, including a presidential letter of appeal. However, the victim’s family refused to accept blood money for forgiveness, leading to the execution.”
The Saudi government reportedly does not allow the repatriation of executed foreigners’ remains. The Department of Migrant Workers disclosed that 44 Filipinos are currently on death row abroad, one of whom is in Saudi Arabia.
According to the European-Saudi Organization for Human Rights (ESOHR), based in Berlin, Saudi Arabia has broken its record for the highest number of foreign executions in a year. Taha al-Hajji, the group’s legal director, stated, “This is the largest number of executions of foreigners in one year. Saudi Arabia has never executed 100 foreigners in a year.”
This surge in capital punishment has drawn criticism from human rights organizations, arguing that it hinders the country’s efforts to attract foreign tourists and investors. Amnesty International reported that Saudi Arabia ranked third globally for executions in 2023, following China and Iran.
The executed foreigners this year included 21 from Pakistan, 20 from Yemen, 14 from Syria, 10 from Nigeria, nine from Egypt, eight from Jordan, and seven from Ethiopia. Smaller numbers were recorded from Sudan, India, and Afghanistan, with three each, and single executions were noted for individuals from Sri Lanka, Eritrea, and the Philippines.
The rise in executions came after Saudi Arabia ended its three-year moratorium on death penalties for drug-related offenses in 2022. ESOHR’s Hajji emphasized that foreign nationals are particularly vulnerable, often targeted by major drug traffickers and subjected to rights violations from arrest to execution.
Saudi Arabia does not publicly disclose the methods used for carrying out death sentences.
