520 Ethiopians awaiting execution for drug trafficking in Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia has executed 520 Ethiopians for drug trafficking, according to the Tigray regional government. Most of those facing the death penalty are from the war-torn Tigray region of northern Ethiopia, said Hayish Sibagadis, head of the region's Youth Affairs Bureau. The executions occurred in a span of months, with two individuals executed on Wednesday, five more in the week prior, five in June, and five in July.

In total, 34 Ethiopians have been sentenced to death for drug trafficking in Saudi Arabia so far in 2026, based on official statements.

The accused were allegedly deceived by brokers into engaging in drug trafficking or were accompanying individuals who were carrying drugs, according to Sibagadis. Many were tried without legal representation, in a language they did not understand, and without an interpreter. Ethiopia, which maintains diplomatic relations with Saudi Arabia, has called on Riyadh to show mercy and spare the lives of those facing execution. The Ethiopian federal government has not yet commented on the matter.

Thousands of Ethiopians, many of whom are employed in low-skilled jobs in Saudi Arabia, undertake the hazardous Eastern Route from the Horn of Africa to the oil-rich kingdom via Yemen. Tigray, a region in northern Ethiopia, experienced a devastating civil war from 2020 to 2022, resulting in an estimated 600,000 deaths, as estimated by the African Union.