ALQST’s Annual Report for 2025, published today, confirms that behind the glittering façade of today’s Saudi Arabia major human rights concerns persist. The report’s title, Still Not Free, reflects the fact that even after the release of a number of prisoners of conscience most of them continue to face heavy restrictions, while other violations continue unabated including escalating use of the death penalty for non-capital offences.
This annual report, our eleventh, takes stock of the human rights situation in Saudi Arabia and examines recent developments. The early months of 2025 saw some positive steps, notably the release of dozens of prisoners of conscience. Yet these measures have done little to advance genuine freedom in the kingdom. The released prisoners remain under severe restrictions including travel bans, while many others continue to be held arbitrarily. Several prisoners had their sentences extended or were given new sentences, and foreign nationals have also been targeted.
The number of executions carried out in Saudi Arabia reached an alarming new high in 2025. According to the official Saudi Press Agency, at least 356 people were executed, surpassing the previous year’s record figure of 345. More than half of these executions were for non-lethal drug offences, primarily involving foreign nationals. Others were carried out for vaguely defined “terrorism” offences that can encompass peaceful dissent, as in the case of journalist Turki al-Jasser. Two young men were executed for alleged crimes committed as minors.
The practice of forced evictions continued in 2025, including in areas cleared for the Neom megaproject, one of five designated host venues for the 2034 World Cup. Given the weakness and poor enforcement of the country’s labour laws, the growing demand for migrant labour to construct such megaprojects and extensive World Cup infrastructure heightens the risk of large-scale exploitation and potential worker deaths.
Meanwhile, women still face entrenched and legally-backed discrimination despite official claims of reform and female empowerment. It is deeply concerning that on 22 October 2025, on Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s recommendation, King Salman appointed as the new Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia Saleh al-Fawzan, who has a record of making deeply misogynistic statements.
Saudi Arabia still lacks core legislation such as a constitution or fixed criminal code, creating a legal vacuum, while also relying on vague and repressive laws such as the Law on Combating Terrorism and the Anti-Cybercrime Law. A Penal Code of Discretionary Sanctions – initially due to come into force in 2022, and intended to be the country’s first written penal code covering crimes without Sharia-specified punishments – has still not been passed.
With Saudi Arabia’s growing international engagement, after a brief period of isolation following high-profile abuses such as the 2018 assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, it is vital that politicians, business leaders and sports and entertainment celebrities do not overlook these ongoing human rights violations and their own power to make a difference. In today’s challenging global context, principled action is needed more than ever.
