Saudi Arabia executing ‘horrifying' number of foreigners for drug crimes
Almost 600 people have been executed over the past decade for drug-related offences, Amnesty International has found, three-quarters of whom were foreign nationals from countries including Pakistan, Syria, Yemen, Nigeria and Egypt.
After a temporary moratorium on drug-related capital punishments between 2021 and 2022, the executions jumped to record levels, with 122 in 2024 and 118 so far this year up until the end of last month.
With little international scrutiny of what Amnesty describes as 'grossly unfair trials' and a 'chilling disregard for human life', the rights organisation warned that the death toll would only increase.
Dana Ahmed, Amnesty International's Middle East researcher, said: 'We are witnessing a truly horrifying trend, with foreign nationals being put to death at a startling rate for crimes that should never carry the death penalty.
'Convincing states to call out and condemn Saudi rights abuses was never easy, given its deep pockets and geopolitical heft. With ongoing conflicts in the Middle East … scrutiny has dwindled even further,' she said.
Amnesty said it had found foreign nationals who had been 'deceived and exploited' after being lured into drug trafficking while migrating for work, with rewards that did not justify the risk of a death penalty for their crime.
It highlighted the case of seven Ethiopians and a Somali man now on death row accused of trafficking 153kg of cannabis estimated to be worth about $3.8m (£2.79m). According to the men's testimony in court documents, they were recruited with the promise of a 'meagre $267 per person'.
The limited education and disadvantaged socioeconomic backgrounds of some foreign nationals on death row increased their risk of exploitation and made it more difficult for them to access legal representation in Saudi Arabia, according to Amnesty. Its report found a lack of access to legal representatives, inadequate consular support and no access to effective interpretation.
At least four cases documented by Amnesty involved people who reported being subjected to torture or other ill treatment during pre-trial detention to extract confessions. Many also did not know the status of their appeals or when their execution might occur, with some only informed by prison officials a day before they were put to death.
Kristine Beckerle, Amnesty International's deputy regional director for the Middle East and North Africa, said: 'The death penalty is the ultimate cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment.
'Saudi Arabia's allies in the international community must exert urgent pressure on the authorities to halt their execution spree and uphold international human rights obligations.'
Saudi officials were contacted for comment.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
38 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
American dentist and engineer wife taught harsh lesson after SHOPLIFTING during visit to strictest country on Earth
An American dentist and his engineer wife spent weeks behind bars after being caught red-handed stealing luxury items in notoriously strict Singapore. The pair, Kapadia Husain Zoher, 35, and Kapadia Amatullah, 30, were arrested on June 23 after stealing from designer shops at Changi Airport. Authorities said the couple, who are both US nationals, stole more than $750 of upmarket items from Louis Vuitton and Dior at the airport before trying to board their jet. They made it all the way to their seats on a flight set for Mumbai before airport police hauled them away. Cops said that CCTV from inside the airport captured the couple in the act, and both were swiftly prosecuted and subsequently pleaded guilty to theft. Zoher was handed an 18-day jail sentence and his wife was sentenced to a week behind bars for the brazen shoplifting. State Prosecuting Officer (SPO) Ng Chee Wee argued at their sentencing that Zoher 'had stolen out of greed. 'He had a habit of overspending, and he did not want to pay,' the prosecutor said. Authorities said the couple's shoplifting spree began around 5pm after they entered Changi Airport's terminal 1. They were seen on CCTV targeting a Louis Vuitton store first, where Zoher stole a credit card holder worth $600. The couple then moved to Terminal 3 around 5:40pm and went to Cosmetics & Perfumes by The Shilla, a designer store. Zoher then took a bottle of Dior Sauvage perfume worth around $160 and slipped it into his pocket, with prosecutors saying he had his wife act as a lookout.
Reuters
3 hours ago
- Reuters
M23 rebels killed 319 civilians in east Congo in July, UN rights chief says
PARIS, Aug 6 (Reuters) - Rwanda-backed M23 rebels killed at least 319 civilians, including 48 women and 19 children, last month in eastern Congo, Volker Turk, U.N. high commissioner for human rights, said on Wednesday, citing "first-hand accounts". The violence in the Rutshuru territory of North Kivu province produced "one of the largest documented death tolls in such attacks since the M23's resurgence in 2022," Turk said in a statement. Reuters first reported on the killings in late July, citing findings by the U.N. Joint Human Rights Office (UNJHRO) that put the death toll at 169 people. M23 leader Bertrand Bisimwa told Reuters at the time it would investigate, but also said the report could be a "smear campaign". A spokesperson for M23, a spokesperson for Rwanda's military and a Rwandan government spokesperson could not immediately be reached for comment on Wednesday. Reuters has not been able to independently confirm the killings, but a local activist cited witnesses as describing M23 combatants using guns and machetes to kill scores of civilians. Two U.N. sources told Reuters that 100 of the dead had been identified by name and that an investigation was ongoing. The M23 and Congolese government have pledged to work towards peace by August 18 after the rebels this year seized more territory than ever before in fighting that has killed thousands and displaced hundreds of thousands more. The UNJHRO findings said M23 targeted suspected members of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), a Congo-based group that includes remnants of Rwanda's former army and militias that carried out the 1994 Rwandan genocide. Turk said on Wednesday the killings had taken place in four villages in Rutshuru from July 9 to July 21 and that most victims were "local farmers camping in their fields during the planting season". Persistent violence in eastern Congo threatens U.S. President Donald Trump's vision for the region, which has been plagued by war for decades and is rich in minerals including gold, cobalt, coltan, tungsten and tin. A peace agreement signed on June 27 in Washington by the Congolese and Rwandan foreign ministers requires Congo to "neutralise" the FDLR as Rwanda withdraws from Congolese territory. Rwanda has long denied helping M23 and says its forces act in self-defence against Congo's army and ethnic Hutu militiamen linked to the 1994 Rwandan genocide, including the FDLR.
The Sun
5 hours ago
- The Sun
Shock WhatsApp block bans 6.8 MILLION people from app – exact rules you must never break to avoid same fate
WHATSAPP has revealed its taken down 6.8million accounts in a huge crackdown on serious misuse. The Meta -owned messaging app said the banned accounts were linked to criminal scam centres targeting people across the world. 1 Many were tied to forced labour and run by organised crime gangs primarily situated in Southeast Asia, the firm claims. The 6.8million accounts in question were all banned in the first six months of 2025. "Based on our investigative insights into the latest enforcement efforts, we proactively detected and took down accounts before scam centers were able to operationalize them," the social networking giant said. "These scam centers typically run many scam campaigns at once – from cryptocurrency investments to pyramid schemes. "There is always a catch and it should be a red flag for everyone: you have to pay upfront to get promised returns or earnings." Meta notes one example where it worked with ChatGPT owner OpenAI to disrupt a criminal scam being run out of Cambodia. These tempted people with cash for liking social media posts to promote a fake rent-a-scooter pyramid scheme. It comes as a new group messaging safety overview is rolled out to users from today. This shows users key information when added to a group by someone not in their contacts. Meta has three tips to help individuals avoid being scammed on WhatsApp. WhatsApp reveals exacty how to block one of your contacts Pause Take time before you respond. Question: Question whether what's being asked makes sense and whether it's too good to be true. Verify: If they're claiming to be a friend or family member, make sure that they are who they say they are by contacting that friend directly. "It's positive that WhatsApp has shut down 6.8 million accounts linked to scammers so far this year, but Meta must do much more to stop these criminals across all its platforms," said Lisa Webb, Which? Consumer Law Expert. "In 2023 alone, £341 million was lost to authorised push payment fraudsters - over half of those scams were reported as originating on Meta platforms. "For far too long, Meta has allowed scammers to run rampant across its platforms. "Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp users are being inundated with fraudulent ads for everything from fake investment opportunities to dodgy products and non-existent job offers. 'Meta needs to ensure that scams are prevented from ever appearing on its platforms in the first place." DON'T FALL FOUL OF THE RULES - YOU COULD BE BANNED TOO Few people realise that they themselves could find their WhatsApp account banned if they break the rules. And it's not only being a scammer that could land you in trouble. Don't use fake WhatsApp apps Some people choose to use a WhatsApp ripoff app on Android for different features. GBWhatsApp and WhatsApp Plus are just two well-known copycat apps. They still allow you to message your mates through WhatsApp but the app itself looks and feels very different. However, WhatsApp doesn't want you using these fakes to access their service. If experts at the firm detect that you're using a WhatsApp one of them, your account risks being banned. Sending too many messages Chat all day long on WhatsApp if you like but messaging too often and getting on people's nerves could inadvertently land you in hot water. This is especially the case if you spam too many groups with nonsense. If a large volume of people report you it'll raise the alarm at WhatsApp HQ. It's at this point you could have your account restricted. Spreading hoaxes We all like a laugh but there are limits - and WhatsApp does not like dangerous hoaxes. Spreading fake news and hoaxes is against the rules. If WhatsApp catches you doing this - probably via people reporting you for it - you risk being banned.
