Saudi Arabia has executed two people convicted of terrorism, the country's interior ministry said today, bringing the total number of executions in the country since the beginning of the year to at least 100.
Two Saudis were executed for participating in acts of "terrorism," including joining a "terrorist organization" and attending training camps abroad, where they learned to make explosives, the ministry said in a statement.
According to AFP data, of the 100 people executed this year, 59 were convicted of drugs, including 43 foreigners.
"While Saudi Arabia positions itself as a positive diplomatic actor, its international partners are showing that they are willing to turn a blind eye to its blatant human rights violations," human rights NGOs said.
"The result is 100-plus executions since January, more than half of them for non-fatal drug-related offenses," it added.
After a moratorium of approximately three years, Saudi authorities resumed executions for drug-related crimes in late 2022.
According to a previous AFP report, at least 338 people were executed last year, compared to 170 in 2023, far higher than the previous known record of 196 in 2022.
In April, the non-governmental organization Amnesty International condemned the "alarming increase" in the use of the death penalty in the wealthy Gulf country, one of the countries in the world where it is most frequently used.
Human rights activists believe that retaining the death penalty damages the reputation of Saudi Arabia, which is engaged in a comprehensive reform program called Vision 2030.
The authorities, for their part, argue that the death penalty is necessary to maintain public order and is applied only when all other judicial remedies have been exhausted.
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