Saudi Arabia executes five people for "terrorism" in the country's predominantly Shiite east

Saudi Arabia executed five Saudis on Saturday for "terrorism," the Interior Ministry announced, bringing the number of executions in 2026 to 188, according to an AFP tally based on official announcements.

The five men "committed terrorist crimes consisting of joining a foreign terrorist organization, repeatedly opening fire on members of the security forces (...) possessing weapons (...) as well as providing support for the financing and execution of terrorist operations" in the kingdom, according to the ministry.

The executions took place in the oil-rich Eastern Province, home to most of Saudi Arabia's Shiite minority, which has long denounced its marginalization in this predominantly Sunni country.

Since January, the kingdom has carried out 15 executions for "terrorism", mostly in the east, compared to 40 in 2025.

Saudi Arabia rarely specifies the date of the acts for which the convicted are charged.

In 2021, a man was also executed in Dammam, the capital of this eastern province. According to Amnesty International, he had been arrested for his alleged participation in the Arab Spring protests in the east of the country in 2011 and 2012.

In 2016, 47 people presented as "terrorists" were also executed, including the Shiite dignitary Nimr Baqer al-Nimr, a leading figure in this protest movement.

His execution sparked outrage in the Shiite world and provoked a diplomatic crisis with Tehran.

Re-established in 2023 under China's auspices, bilateral relations have been severely tested by the war in the Middle East and Iranian retaliatory strikes against the Gulf monarchies.

Riyadh also accused Tehran on Friday of "encouraging" the intensification of military operations by the pro-Iranian Yemeni Houthis, who are increasing their strikes against the kingdom, an ally of the internationally recognized Yemeni government, after the resumption of the conflict in Yemen in July.

Among the 188 people executed this year in Saudi Arabia, there were 88 Saudis and 115 convicted of drug trafficking, including 79 foreigners, AFP counted.

According to Amnesty International, Saudi Arabia was the third country that carried out the most executions between 2022 and 2025, behind China and Iran.

Riyadh considers the death penalty necessary to maintain order and assures that it is only applied after all appeals have been exhausted.

AFP