According to a report by Amnesty International, over 1,500 people were killed in state executions globally in 2024, the highest figure since 2015. The majority of deaths were in Iran, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia, which collectively killed 1,380 people.
The report highlights that the death penalty is used to silence critics and punish individuals for drug-related offenses, with over 40% of executions carried out unlawfully for such crimes. Despite the high number of deaths, the report notes that fewer countries are using the death sentence, with 113 countries now fully abolitionist.