Coinciding with the release of its annual report on the death penalty in Saudi Arabia, titled Blood Era: A Historic Number of Executions, the European Saudi Organization for Human Rights held a seminar via Zoom on January 9, 2025.
The seminar was moderated by the organization’s lead researcher, Duaa Dhaini, and featured participants including legal director and lawyer Taha Al-Hajji, activist and Program Director at the Egypt Platform for Human Rights, Samar Al-Masri, alongside Hussein Al-Nimr, a relative of execution victim Abdul-Majeed Al-Nimr.
Dhaini opened the seminar by highlighting that Saudi Arabia carried out 345 executions in 2024, according to official statements from the Ministry of Interior. She noted that, as detailed in the annual report, Saudi Arabia expanded the range of charges punishable by execution, saw a 50% increase in the number of women executed, and a rise in the proportion of foreign nationals among those sentenced to death. Other indicators underscored the brutality of these executions. As 2025 began, Saudi Arabia appeared to be continuing this record-breaking trend, executing 14 people within just nine days.
Activist Samar Al-Husseini described the findings of the European Saudi Organization’s report as shocking and contradictory to the image Saudi Arabia tries to project and to its Vision 2030 narrative. She pointed out that the death penalty is an irreversible punishment, which is why most countries handle it with extreme caution and strive to find alternatives. In contrast, Saudi Arabia’s escalation in executions is linked to the absence of consequences for its actions. She also highlighted how this dynamic affects Egyptians under threat of execution, where Saudi influence in Egypt and the close ties between the two countries have rendered the issue of death sentences a taboo subject.
Al-Husseini emphasized that the Egyptian government does not make any demands regarding its citizens in Saudi Arabia, allowing the latter to freely arrest and sentence Egyptians without hesitation. She noted that fear of retaliation prevents families from adequately defending their loved ones, and Saudi Arabia remains completely closed off to activists and organizations. Al-Husseini stressed that since Saudi Arabia is a preferred destination for foreign workers, especially Egyptians, embassies have a responsibility to monitor their rights and conditions, particularly those subject to the justice system, including those sentenced to death.
Al-Husseini argued that meaningful change can only occur if there is political will, as international criticism, United Nations recommendations, and repeated official promises all require such will, which appears to be absent in Saudi Arabia.
For his part, lawyer Taha Al-Hajji highlighted that the number of executions in 2024 indicates a deliberate move toward increasing executions, contrary to statements made by the Crown Prince, which he described as incomprehensible. He proposed possible explanations for these high numbers, such as a potential attempt to empty overcrowded prisons or a strategy by the Crown Prince to appear as a reformer by halting these executions upon officially ascending the throne. However, he emphasized that these interpretations remain speculative.
Al-Hajji pointed out that Saudi Arabia lacks a constitution, rendering its laws arbitrary, as there is no penal code to define the grounds for limiting executions. Instead, discretionary rulings are used as a tool to facilitate the use of this punishment.
He noted that the expansion of executions has included foreign nationals whose countries fail to protect their rights, as well as new charges such as promoting hashish, which had not been observed before. In political cases, Al-Hajji explained that sentences are predetermined from the time of arrest, with trials being mere formalities that disregard violations such as torture, denial of legal counsel, and more.
Al-Hajji stressed that it is impossible to determine the actual number of individuals currently at risk of execution, but the execution figures for 2024 indicate a significantly high number, including sentences that remain unreported. Despite Saudi Arabia’s efforts to conceal human rights violations, Al-Hajji recognized that notable human rights activism continues to undermine its plans.
The remarks highlighted that in 2024, Saudi Arabia attempted to manipulate and conceal information that it had previously disclosed in an effort to mislead. For example, it withheld details about the type of rulings in discretionary death sentences. It emphasized the direct responsibility of the King and Crown Prince for the executions, noting that there is no independent judiciary in Saudi Arabia, and executions are only carried out with their signatures, while they also withhold the right to grant pardons, which is under their authority. Furthermore, the claim that these rulings are based on implementing Sharia law was dismissed as false, particularly given that the doubling of execution numbers during King Salman's reign demonstrates the use of this punishment far from any pretense of deterrence.
Activist Hussein Al-Nimr spoke about the tragedy of his uncle Abdul-Majeed Al-Nimr, who was executed in August 2024. He explained that Abdul-Majeed was arrested due to his religious and social activism and was subjected to severe violations, including extreme torture that led to his hospitalization. The family was shocked when a death sentence was issued against him, as an earlier ruling had sentenced him to nine years in prison. Hussein stressed that Abdul-Majeed’s case is a clear example of Saudi Arabia’s inconsistency and manipulation, as he was accused of belonging to Al-Qaeda, a group whose ideology and beliefs were entirely contrary to his own, especially as he hailed from Qatif in Al-Awamiyah.
Regarding the execution, Hussein pointed out that the family learned about it from the media and the Ministry of Interior’s statement. They were denied their right to bid farewell and to bury him, and Saudi Arabia also prohibits families from requesting the return of the body.
Hussein emphasized that activists and families abroad must continue to expose the truth about what is happening in Saudi Arabia. However, the primary responsibility lies with those inside the country, who face various forms of intimidation and fearmongering.