‘Global executions hit highest level in 25 years in 2015’

At least 1,634 people were executed last year, human rights group Amnesty International said in a new report

BERLIN // There were more known executions worldwide in 2015 than in any year since 1990, with almost 90 per cent occurring in Iran, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, Amnesty International said on Wednesday.

At least 1,634 people were executed last year, the human rights group said in a new report, adding that the actual number was probably significantly higher given that there are no definitive numbers for China.

“The number of known executions rose by more than 50 per cent compared with 2014. This development is unsettling and alarming,” said Oliver Hendrich, an expert on capital punishment at Amnesty International.

At least 977 people were executed in Iran last year, mostly for drug crimes, while more than 320 death sentences were carried out in Pakistan and at least 158 people were executed in Saudi Arabia.

China is believed to remain the world’s top executioner, however, with the number of people put to death annually in the thousands, though the exact figure is a state secret, the rights group said.

In the United States, 28 people were executed last year – the lowest number since 1991.

When asked about the report at a daily news briefing, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lu Kang said Amnesty often released “unfair” statements about China that lacked objectivity.

“So we have no interest in making comment on this,” he said.

Countries that impose the death penalty are in the minority for the first time now, according to the report. It said 102 countries had got rid of the death penalty for all crimes by the end of 2015, compared with 60 countries in 1996.

* Reuters