The number of judicially sanctioned executions recorded globally spiked dramatically in 2025, reaching the highest total witnessed in over four decades.
According to the annual report released by the London-based human rights organization Amnesty International, the surge was driven primarily by Iran, where the number of executions more than doubled over the past year. The NGO documented at least 2,707 executions worldwide in 2025. Crucially, this figure does not account for the thousands of state-sanctioned killings believed to have taken place in China, a nation that actively treats its death penalty data as a state secret.
A Stark 78% Worldwide Increase
Excluding China, the global execution rate skyrocketed by 78% compared to previous years, marking the most lethal period since 1981 when Amnesty International documented 3,191 executions.
The data reveals that Iran alone was responsible for a staggering 80% of all globally recorded executions in 2025. The Islamic Republic carried out at least 2,159 executions by hanging last year, a massive escalation from the 972 cases documented in 2024.
“Iranian authorities have drastically intensified their reliance on the death penalty, wielding it systematically as a tool of political control and domestic oppression,” the Amnesty International report emphasized.
War and Domestic Crackdowns
The rights organization noted a direct correlation between geopolitical conflict and the acceleration of the death penalty within Iran.
Executions in the country reportedly saw an unprecedented spike following the brief, 12-day military conflict launched against Iran by Israel and the United States in June. While 654 executions were carried out in the months leading up to the conflict, an additional 1,505 executions were swiftly enacted in the subsequent wave of domestic crackdowns between July and December.
