The number of executions worldwide has reached its highest level since 2017. Nearly 900 people were put to death in 20 countries in 2022, Amnesty International warned in its annual report on the death penalty published on Tuesday 16 May.

"The main countries behind this record, in the Middle East and North Africa, (have) engaged in a killing spree," the NGO said.

The human rights organization counted 883 people executed, a 53% increase compared to 2021.

Executions on the rise in Iran, Saudi Arabia and Egypt

"This surge in executions, which does not take into account the thousands of others that probably took place in China last year, is mainly due to countries in the Middle East and North Africa, where recorded figures rose from 520 in 2021 to 825 in 2022," Amnesty International said.

The number of executions in Iran increased from 314 in 2021 to 576 in 2022. It tripled in Saudi Arabia, from 65 to 196 – the highest level recorded by the NGO in thirty years. Egypt executed 24 people in 2022, the report said.

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Saudi Arabia "went so far as to execute 81 prisoners in a single day," said Agnes Callamard, Amnesty International's secretary general.

It also highlights the situation in Iran, where "in a desperate attempt to put an end to the popular uprising, the authorities took the lives of people who had only exercised their right to demonstrate".

China in the lead, a "glimmer of hope in six countries"

Amnesty International points out that the total number of executions worldwide in 2022 was actually "significantly higher", as "the secrecy surrounding the use of the death penalty still prevented accurate assessment in several countries, such as China, North Korea and Vietnam".

"Although the precise number of people executed in China is unknown, China clearly remained at the top of the list of executing countries," the NGO added.

However, the report retains "a glimmer of hope": six countries have completely or partially abolished the death penalty in 2022. Kazakhstan, Papua New Guinea, Sierra Leone and the Central African Republic have abolished it for all crimes, while Equatorial Guinea and Zambia have abolished it only for ordinary crimes.

With AFP

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