Saudi Arabia Ends 2025 by Executing Three Young Men, Raising Political Executions to 45
On the last day of 2025, Saudi authorities carried out the execution of three Saudi citizens—Ahmed Al-Abu Abdullah, Mousa Al-Sakhman, and Reda Al-Ammar—bringing the total number of political executions in 2025 to 45, including the execution of a journalist.
According to a statement by the Ministry of Interior, the three were executed under taʿzīr (discretionary punishment) on alleged terrorism-related charges. Saudi authorities have repeatedly used this label to fabricate and manipulate charges against dissidents and individuals exercising free expression. SANAD Human Rights Organization stresses that this pattern is well-documented: journalist Turki Al-Jasser was previously executed on terrorism charges over tweets, Dhafer Al-Shahri was executed on the same pretext despite the case involving a single tweet, and in another example of fabricated accusations, a Shia detainee was executed on claims of affiliation with Al-Qaeda—an allegation that fundamentally contradicts his religious and ideological background and exposes the absurdity of the charge.
SANAD notes that labeling these rulings as “discretionary executions” means the death sentences were imposed based on judicial discretion, rather than on proven charges of murder as claimed in the Interior Ministry’s statement.
SANAD Human Rights Organization strongly condemns these executions, affirming that they constitute a grave violation of the right to life and basic principles of fair trial, especially amid a lack of transparency, absence of judicial independence, and continued reliance on coerced confessions extracted under torture.
SANAD holds Saudi authorities fully responsible for this deadly escalation and calls on the international community, the United Nations, and human rights organizations to assume their responsibilities and exert serious pressure on Mohammed bin Salman to halt political executions, end the misuse of “counterterrorism” laws, and guarantee the right to life and fair trial for all detainees in Saudi Arabia.
