Global Executions Reach 5-Year High, Iran Leads in Death Penalty Use.
Amnesty International reports a 53 percent increase in executions globally in 2022, with 883 people executed in 19 countries, excluding China where data is classified. Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt accounted for 90 percent of known executions outside China. Four countries abolished the death penalty for all crimes in 2022, bringing the total number of abolitionist countries to 112. Nine countries have abolished the death penalty for crimes not committed during times of war, while 23 countries still retain the death penalty but have not executed anyone in the past 10 years. 55 countries still retain and implement the death penalty.