Overview
- Amnesty International, which released its annual report Monday, counted at least 2,707 executions across 17 countries in 2025, a 78% rise from 2024.
- Iran accounted for about 80% of the total with 2,159 hangings, concentrated in the second half of the year after June’s 12‑Day conflict.
- Nearly half of Iran’s 2025 executions, 998 cases, were for drug offenses under harsh narcotics laws.
- The tally excludes China, which Amnesty says carried out thousands of executions under opaque procedures, making the true global total higher.
- The report omits cases linked to January protests and those after February 28 in Iran, and the UN reports at least 21 additional political or security executions since late February.