RIYADH: Saudi Arabia executed seven people on Wednesday, including five for drug trafficking, the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) said.

The deaths brought the total number of executions carried out this year in the country to 236, according to a tally based on official statements.

Yahya Lutfullah, Ali Azib, Ahmed Ali and Salem Nahari were executed in the southern province of Asir for “smuggling hashish” into the country, the interior ministry said in a statement published by SPA. The report said all four were Yemeni citizens.

Also on Wednesday, the same source announced the execution of a Pakistani man for drug trafficking, bringing the number of people executed for that crime this year to 71.

Saudi Arabia has become a major market for captagon, an addictive amphetamine drug flooding in from war-torn Syria and Lebanon.

Saudi authorities launched a high-profile anti-drug campaign last year, leading to a spate of raids and arrests. Executions of drug traffickers have been increasing since a moratorium on the death penalty for drug cases ended two years ago.

The interior ministry also announced the execution of two Saudis for murder on Wednesday.

Saudi Arabia executed the third highest number of prisoners in the world after China and Iran in 2023, according to Amnesty International, which began recording the annual figures in 1990.

Riyadh’s use of the death penalty has been criticised numerous times, with rights groups saying it is excessive and out of step with its efforts to present a more modern image on the world stage. Riyadh has previously said that the death penalty is necessary to “maintain public order” and sentences are only carried out if “the defendants have exhausted all levels of litigation”.

Published in Dawn, October 24th, 2024