Capital punishment by country

Capital punishment, also called the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned killing of a person as a punishment for a crime. It has historically been used in almost every part of the world. Since the mid-1800s, many countries have abolished or discontinued the practice. In 2024, the five countries that are known to have executed the most people were, in descending order, China (1,000+), Iran (972+), Saudi Arabia (345+), Iraq (63+), and Yemen (38+).

The 193 United Nations member states and the 2 observer states fall into four categories based on their use of capital punishment. As of 2024:

  • 54 retain capital punishment and have used it in the last ten years.
  • 23 retain capital punishment but have not used it in the last ten years and are believed to have a policy of not carrying out executions or have made a commitment not to do so.
  • 9 retain capital punishment only in extraordinary circumstances (such as for treason, military offences, or offences committed during wartime) and have not used it in the last twelve years.
  • 113 have fully abolished capital punishment.

In addition, the non-UN member state Kosovo has fully abolished capital punishment, whereas the non-UN member state Taiwan actively retains capital punishment.

From 2010 to 2019, 5 countries (Iran, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and South Sudan) were recorded to have executed offenders who were minors (under 18) when the offence was committed, which is a breach of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (ratified by all countries except the United States). This ended in 2020 by royal decree in Saudi Arabia.

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