Saudi Arabia executed a record number of people in a single year, with 184 in 2019, despite a decline in executions across the world, a prominent international human rights watchdog said on Tuesday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 21st April, 2020) Saudi Arabia executed a record number of people in a single year, with 184 in 2019, despite a decline in executions across the world, a prominent international human rights watchdog said on Tuesday.
On Tuesday, Amnesty International published a report that shows a drop in the number of people sentenced to death for the second consecutive year. In 2019, the watchdog registered a 5-percent decline compared to 2018, which resulted in the lowest recorded figure of the past decade � 657 executions.
"The 184 executions in Saudi Arabia were the highest ever recorded by Amnesty International in one year in the country. This spike occurred in the context of an increase in the use of the death penalty as a political weapon against Shi'a dissidents," Amnesty International said in the report.
According to the report, apart from Saudi Arabia, a spike of executions was also recorded in Iraq, which doubled its figure compared to 2018, Yemen and South Sudan. Meanwhile, the record reduced significantly in Egypt, with a drop from 43 to 32; Japan, with a decrease from 15 to 3; and Singapore with a reduction from 13 to 4.
The analysis also established that the top five executing countries in 2019 were China, Iran � despite a small decline in the number � Saudi Arabi, Iraq and Egypt, according to the rights group.
