• Iran: Execution rates spiked amid ongoing political unrest.
• Saudi Arabia: A marked escalation in punitive drug control policies.
• Singapore & Kuwait: Also contributed to the rising execution count.

The data confirms a clear and established trend: punitive drug control is a major driver of the death penalty worldwide. In 2025, drug offences accounted for more than 46% of all confirmed executions globally.

The application of the death penalty for drug offences frequently targets the most vulnerable members of society including ethnic minorities. In 2025, the demographics of those executed revealed a disturbing trend of targeting low-level or peripheral roles rather than high-level traffickers.

• 338 people from ethnic minorities, 271 foreign nationals, and 23 women were executed for drug offences in 2025.
• Many of those executed faced serious due process violations.
• The majority occupied peripheral roles in the drug trade.
• By the end of 2025, over 2,450 people remained on death row for drug offences across 22 countries.

While the world has generally trended toward abolition, 2025 saw significant setbacks. For the first time in over a decade, two countries (Algeria and the Maldives) introduced the death penalty for certain drug offences. These reforms contradict states’ obligations to progressively restrict the use of capital punishment and reverse the global trend towards abolition.

Despite the scale of the crisis, international accountability remains weak. While some actors—including OHCHR, UN human rights experts, and the European Union—have condemned executions and called for moratoria, many states have remained silent. Notably, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has taken no public position on drug-related executions, while continuing to support counter-narcotics programmes in executing countries.

There is a growing “accountability gap” in international drug policy.

• Condemnation: The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, European Union, and UN human rights experts have called for an immediate moratorium.
• Silence: The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has maintained a public silence on these executions while continuing to fund counter-narcotics programs in executing states.

To promote the “health and welfare of mankind,” a fundamental shift in drug policy is required. Continuing the current punitive approach risks complicity in human rights abuses. Global leaders must choose between maintaining a failed, violent status quo or pursuing humane, effective drug policies that move toward the total abolition of the death penalty.