One execution was for drug offences

Kuwait has executed 12 people this year

Disturbing upward trend in executions by countries in the Gulf

‘There is no credible evidence that such executions by the Government have a greater deterrent effect on crimes than prison terms’ - Rawya Rageh

Responding to the hanging of five people by the Kuwaiti authorities yesterday including one convicted of a drug-related offence, Rawya Rageh, Amnesty International's Deputy Director for the Middle East and North Africa, said:

“The Kuwaiti government has now executed a dozen people in less than a year, claiming a ‘tough on crime’ approach that panders to people’s worst instincts. The execution of one man for a drug-related offence violates international law which prohibits the use of the death penalty for such an offence.

“It is deeply disappointing that Kuwait has returned to executions with such vigour particularly given they’d paused executions for five years from 2017.

“There is no credible evidence that such executions by the Government have a greater deterrent effect on crimes than prison terms.

“Amnesty calls on the Kuwaiti authorities to immediately establish an official moratorium on executions with a view to abolishing the death penalty.”

Disturbing rise in executions

Kuwait’s Office of Public Prosecution on 27 July announced via Twitter that the five executed were: Kuwaiti national Abdul-Aziz al-Mutairi, Egyptian national Gamal Ibrahim, and Ahmad Shibrim, described only as ‘an illegal resident’ - all convicted of premeditated murder; Abdul-Rahman Saud, also described only as ‘an illegal resident’ convicted of facilitating logistics for the 26 June 2015 suicide bombing of the Shia Imam al-Sadeq mosque in Kuwait City, which killed 26 people and injured over 200 and was claimed by Islamic State; and Jodi Ravindra, a Sri Lankan convicted of “possessing with intent to traffic and use intoxicating and mind-altering drugs”.

The executions in Kuwait are part of a disturbing upward trend in executions by the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council in recent years. Saudi Arabia has so far executed more than 50 people this year, including for drug-related offences. Bahrain resumed executions in 2017 after halting them for more than six years and has executed six people since its resumption.