Editing Capital punishment (section)

==Contemporary use==
{{scalable image|Capital punishment in the world.svg|1580px|{{legend|#008080|Abolitionist countries: 110}}	{{legend|#80E000|Abolitionist-in-law countries for all crimes except those committed under exceptional circumstances (such as crimes committed in wartime): 9}}	{{legend|#D59348|Abolitionist-in-practice countries (have not executed anyone during the past 10 years or more and are believed to have a policy or established practice of not carrying out executions): 23}}	{{legend|#FF0000|Retentionist countries: 53}}}}

===By country===
{{main|Capital punishment by country}}
Most nations, including almost all [[Developed country|developed countries]], have abolished capital punishment either in law or in practice; notable exceptions are the [[Capital punishment in the United States|United States]], [[Capital punishment in Japan|Japan]], [[Capital punishment in Taiwan|Taiwan]], and [[Capital punishment in Singapore|Singapore]]. Additionally, capital punishment is also carried out in [[Capital punishment in China|China]], [[Capital punishment in India|India]], and most [[Religion and capital punishment#Islam|Islamic states]].<ref name="Bienen2010">{{cite book|author=Leigh B. Bienen|title=Murder and Its Consequences: Essays on Capital Punishment in America|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vmpEQUhpNXUC&pg=PA143|edition=2nd|date=2010|publisher=Northwestern University Press|isbn=978-0-8101-2697-8|page=143}}</ref><ref name="Tonry2000">{{cite book|author=Michael H. Tonry|title=The Handbook of Crime & Punishment|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7MePbzYyZ2YC&pg=PA3|year=2000|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-514060-6|page=3}}</ref><ref name="Reichert2011">{{cite book|author=Elisabeth Reichert|title=Social Work and Human Rights: A Foundation for Policy and Practice|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2LylU2Yp6NYC&pg=PA89|year=2011|publisher=Columbia University Press|isbn=978-0-231-52070-6|page=89}}</ref><ref name="Durrant2013">{{cite book|author=Russil Durrant|title=An Introduction to Criminal Psychology|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mIpMUpsoy90C&pg=PA268|year=2013|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-136-23434-7|page=268}}</ref><ref name="BryantPeck2009">{{cite book|author1=Clifton D. Bryant|author2=Dennis L. Peck|title=Encyclopedia of Death & Human Experience |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LFOn7rpkVdQC&pg=PA144|year=2009|publisher=Sage Publications|isbn=978-1-4129-5178-4|page=144}}</ref><ref name="Roberson2015">{{cite book|author=Cliff Roberson|title=Constitutional Law and Criminal Justice, Second Edition|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oHu9CgAAQBAJ&pg=PA188|year=2015|publisher=CRC Press|isbn=978-1-4987-2120-2|page=188}}</ref>
{{Anchor|Legend}}
[[File:Death penalty in the United States.svg|thumb|350px|upright=1.15|A map showing U.S. states where the death penalty is authorized for certain crimes, even if not recently used. The death penalty is also authorized [[Capital punishment in the United States#Capital crimes|for certain federal and military crimes]].
{{legend|#FF0000|States with a valid death penalty statute}}
{{legend|#008080|States without the death penalty}}]]

Since [[World War II]], there has been a trend toward abolishing the death penalty. 54 countries retain the death penalty in active use, 112 countries have abolished capital punishment altogether, 7 have done so for all offences except under special circumstances, and 22 more have abolished it in practice because they have not used it for at least 10 years and are believed to have a policy or established practice against carrying out executions.<ref name="Amnesty2018">{{cite web |title=Abolitionist and Retentionist Countries as of July 2018 |url=https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/ACT5066652017ENGLISH.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210408153822/https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/ACT5066652017ENGLISH.pdf |archive-date=8 April 2021 |access-date=3 December 2018 |publisher=Amnesty International}}</ref>

[[File:Number of abolitionist and retentionist countries by year.png|thumb|350px|
Number of abolitionist and retentionist countries by year
{{legend|#4285F4|Number of retentionist countries}}
{{legend|#EA4335|Number of abolitionist countries}}
]]

According to Amnesty International, 20 countries are known to have performed executions in 2022.<ref name="Amnesty2022">{{cite web |title=Death sentences and executions 2022 |url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/act50/6548/2023/en/ |publisher=Amnesty International |access-date=28 July 2023 |date=16 May 2023}}</ref> There are countries which do not publish information on the use of capital punishment, most significantly China and [[Capital punishment in North Korea|North Korea]]. According to Amnesty International, around 1,000 prisoners were executed in 2017.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/04/amnesty-1000-prisoners-executed-worldwide-2017-180411131143832.html|title=Amnesty: Almost 1,000 prisoners executed worldwide in 2017|website=www.aljazeera.com|access-date=8 August 2018}}</ref> Amnesty reported in 2004 and 2009 that Singapore and Iraq respectively had the world's highest per capita execution rate.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2010-08-05 |title=Singapore has highest death penalty rate |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna3958717 |website=[[NBC News]], [[Associated Press]] |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2010 |title=death sentences and executions 2009| page= 8 |url=https://www.amnesty.eu/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/AIDeathSentencesandExecutions09.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201230012416/https://www.amnesty.eu/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/AIDeathSentencesandExecutions09.pdf |archive-date=2020-12-30 |website=[[Amnesty International]]}}</ref> According to [[Al Jazeera Media Network|Al Jazeera]] and UN Special Rapporteur [[Ahmed Shaheed]], Iran has had the world's highest per capita execution rate.<ref>{{Cite web |date=24 April 2019 |title=Zarif slams US silence on mass executions in Saudi Arabia |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/4/24/zarif-slams-us-silence-on-mass-executions-in-saudi-arabia |website=[[Al Jazeera Media Network|Al Jazeera]] |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Lynch |first=Colum |date=27 October 2015 |title=Iran Wins World Record for Most Executions Per Capita |url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2015/10/27/rouhani-zarif-state-department-human-rightsiran-wins-world-record-for-most-executions-per-capita/ |website=[[Foreign Policy]] |language=en-US}}</ref> A 2012 EU report from the [[Directorate-General for External Relations]]' policy department pointed to [[Capital punishment in the Gaza Strip|Gaza]] as having the highest per capita execution rate in the [[MENA]] region.<ref>{{Cite web |first1=Anastasia |last1=Calvieri |first2=Pekka |last2=Hakala |first3=Anete |last3=Bandone |date=4 December 2012 |title=Quick policy insight The death penalty in the Middle East and North Africa (page 6) |url=https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/briefing_note/join/2012/491450/EXPO-JOIN_SP(2012)491450_EN.pdf |website=[[European Parliament]]}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:right;"
|-
!rowspan=2| Country !!colspan=2|Total executed (2022)
|-
!Capital<br>Punishments<br>UK	<ref>{{Cite book|url=http://www.capitalpunishmentuk.org/overview.html|title=Death sentences and executions 2022|publisher=Capital Punishments UK|year=2022|location=London}}</ref>!!Amnesty<br>International<br><ref name="Amnesty2022"/>
|-
| style="text-align:left;" | {{flag|China}} || Unknown || >{{nts|1000}}
|-
| style="text-align:left;" | {{flag|Iran}} || >{{nts|596}} || >{{nts|576}}
|-
| style="text-align:left;" | {{flag|Saudi Arabia}} || {{nts|146}} || {{nts|196}}
|-
| style="text-align:left;" | {{flag|Egypt}} || {{nts|13}} || {{nts|24}}
|-
| style="text-align:left;" | {{flag|Somalia}} (including {{Flag|Somaliland}})
| {{nts|19}} || >{{nts|6}}
|-
| style="text-align:left;" | {{flag|United States}} || {{nts|18}} || {{nts|18}}
|-
| style="text-align:left;" | {{flag|Singapore}} || {{nts|11}} || {{nts|11}}
|-
| style="text-align:left;" | {{flag|Iraq}} || {{nts|4}} || >{{nts|11}}
|-
| style="text-align:left;" | {{flag|Kuwait}} || {{nts|7}} || {{nts|7}}
|-
| style="text-align:left;" | {{flag|Palestine}} || {{nts|5}} || {{nts|5}}
|-
| style="text-align:left;" | {{flag|South Sudan}} || {{nts|2}} || >{{nts|5}}
|-
| style="text-align:left;" | {{flag|Bangladesh}} || {{nts|4}} || {{nts|4}}
|-
| style="text-align:left;" | {{flag|Myanmar}} || {{nts|4}} || {{nts|4}}
|-
| style="text-align:left;" | {{flag|Yemen}} || {{nts|1}} || >{{nts|4}}
|-
| style="text-align:left;" | {{flag|Belarus}} || {{nts|0}} || {{nts|3}}
|-
| style="text-align:left;" | {{flag|Japan}} || {{nts|1}} || {{nts|1}}
|-
| style="text-align:left;" | {{flag|Syria}} || {{nts|1}} || Unknown
|-
| style="text-align:left;" | {{flag|Jordan}} || {{nts|1}} || {{nts|0}}
|-
| style="text-align:left;" | {{flag|Afghanistan}} || {{nts|0}} || Unknown
|-
| style="text-align:left;" | {{flag|North Korea}} || Unknown || Unknown
|-
| style="text-align:left;" | {{flag|Vietnam}} || Unknown || Unknown
|}

The use of the death penalty is becoming increasingly restrained in some retentionist countries including [[Taiwan]] and Singapore.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://yoursdp.org/index.php/news/singapore/3493-heroin-smuggler-challenges-singapore-death-sentence |title=Heroin smuggler challenges Singapore death sentence |publisher=Singapore Democratic Party |date=16 March 2010 |access-date=30 April 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120323124649/http://yoursdp.org/index.php/news/singapore/3493-heroin-smuggler-challenges-singapore-death-sentence |archive-date=23 March 2012 }}</ref>{{Better source needed|reason=The current source is insufficiently reliable, appearing to be a govt source without its own article ([[WP:NOTRS]]).|date=March 2022}} Indonesia carried out no executions between November 2008 and March 2013.<ref name="hrw-ind">{{cite web|title=Indonesia: First Execution in 4 Years a Major Setback|url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2013/03/21/indonesia-first-execution-4-years-major-setback|work=Human Rights Watch |access-date=17 May 2013|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130528043848/http://www.hrw.org/news/2013/03/21/indonesia-first-execution-4-years-major-setback|archive-date=28 May 2013|date=21 March 2013}}</ref> Singapore, Japan and the United States are the only developed countries that are classified by Amnesty International as 'retentionist' (South Korea is classified as 'abolitionist in practice').<ref name="amnesty.org">{{cite web |url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/death-penalty/abolitionist-and-retentionist-countries |title=Abolitionist and retentionist countries |publisher=Amnesty International |access-date=11 February 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140209075925/http://www.amnesty.org/en/death-penalty/abolitionist-and-retentionist-countries |archive-date=9 February 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/research/2015/02/death-sentences-and-executions-2014/|title=Error – Amnesty International|website=www.amnesty.org|date=28 February 2015|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151231222052/https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/research/2015/02/death-sentences-and-executions-2014/|archive-date=31 December 2015}}</ref> Nearly all retentionist countries are situated in Asia, Africa and the [[Caribbean]].<ref name="amnesty.org"/> The only retentionist country in Europe is Belarus and in March 2023 Belarusian President [[Alexander Lukashenko]] signed a law which allows to use capital punishment against officials and soldiers convicted of high [[treason]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Belarus approves death penalty for officials convicted of high treason |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/belarus-approves-death-penalty-officials-convicted-high-treason-2023-03-09/ |website=[[Reuters]]}}</ref> During the 1980s, the democratisation of Latin America swelled the ranks of abolitionist countries.<ref>{{cite news |title=Why a world day against the death penalty? |url=https://www.equaltimes.org/why-a-world-day-against-the-death?lang=en |access-date=28 July 2023 |work=Equal Times |date=9 October 2015}}</ref>

This was soon followed by the [[revolutions of 1989|overthrow]] of the [[Eastern Bloc|socialist states in Europe]]. Many of these countries aspired to enter the EU, which strictly requires member states not to practice the death penalty, as does the [[Council of Europe]] (see [[Capital punishment in Europe]]). Public support for the death penalty in the EU varies.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/article.php?did=2165 |title=International Polls & Studies |publisher=The [[Death Penalty Information Center]] |access-date=1 April 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927203428/http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/article.php?did=2165 |archive-date=27 September 2007 }}</ref> The last execution in a member state of the present-day Council of Europe took place in 1997 in [[Ukraine]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://hub.coe.int/what-we-do/human-rights/death-penalty |title=Death Penalty – Council of Europe |publisher=Hub.coe.int |access-date=11 February 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140205224923/http://hub.coe.int/what-we-do/human-rights/death-penalty |archive-date=5 February 2014 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.handsoffcain.info/bancadati/schedastato.php?idcontinente=20&nome=ukraine |title=Hands Off Cain HANDS – against death penalty in the world |publisher=Handsoffcain.info |access-date=11 February 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140203235754/http://www.handsoffcain.info/bancadati/schedastato.php?idcontinente=20&nome=ukraine |archive-date=3 February 2014}}</ref> In contrast, the rapid industrialisation in Asia has seen an increase in the number of developed countries which are also retentionist. In these countries, the death penalty retains strong public support, and the matter receives little attention from the government or the media; in China there is a small but significant and growing movement to abolish the death penalty altogether.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cadpnet.com/show.asp?id=689 |title=China Against Death Penalty (CADP) |publisher=Cadpnet.com |date=31 March 2012 |access-date=12 December 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121027173245/https://www.cadpnet.com/show.asp?id=689 |archive-date=27 October 2012}}</ref> This trend has been followed by some African and Middle Eastern countries where support for the death penalty remains high.

Some countries have resumed practising the death penalty after having previously suspended the practice for long periods. The United States suspended executions in 1972 but resumed them in 1976; there was no execution in India between 1995 and 2004; and [[Sri Lanka]] declared an end to its [[Moratorium (law)|moratorium]] on the death penalty on 20 November 2004,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.amnesty.org.uk/news_details_p.asp?NewsID=16269 |title=AIUK : Sri Lanka: President urged to prevent return to death penalty after 29-year moratorium |publisher=Amnesty.org.uk |access-date=23 August 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110605115738/http://www.amnesty.org.uk/news_details_p.asp?NewsID=16269 |archive-date=5 June 2011 }}</ref> although it has not yet performed any further executions. The [[Capital punishment in the Philippines|Philippines]] re-introduced the death penalty in 1993 after abolishing it in 1987, but again abolished it in 2006.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Jha |first1=Preeti |title=Philippines death penalty: A fight to stop the return of capital punishment |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-53762570.amp |date=16 August 2020 |access-date=6 September 2021 |agency=BBC News}}</ref>

The United States and Japan are the only developed countries to have recently carried out executions. The U.S. federal government, the U.S. military, and 27 states have a valid death penalty statute, and over 1,400 executions have been carried in the United States since it reinstated the death penalty in 1976. Japan has 106 inmates with finalized death sentences {{as of|2024|December|26|lc=y|df=US}}, after [[Chisako Kakehi]], who was the 78-year-old death row inmate convicted of murdering her husband and common-law spouses to inherit their assets, has died while in custody.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2024/12/26/japan/crime-legal/cyanide-murder-death/|title=Chisako Kakehi, sentenced to death for cyanide murders, dies in custody |publisher=[[Japan Times]] |date=26 December 2024|access-date=19 February 2025}}</ref>

{{As of|2025|05|post=,}} the most recent country to abolish the death penalty was [[Zimbabwe]] on 31 December 2024, almost twenty years after the last execution in the country.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Zimbabwe abolishes death penalty almost 20 years after its last hanging |url=https://apnews.com/article/zimbabwe-death-penalty-abolished-ccbdd774559f5bbf097176d42effbb60 |last=Mutsaka |first=Farai |date=2024-12-31 |access-date=2025-05-18 |website=[[Associated Press]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Zimbabwe abolishes death penalty |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn8gqz7n559o |last=Chothia |first=Farouk |date=2024-12-31 |access-date=2025-05-18 |website=[[BBC News]]}}</ref>

According to an Amnesty International report released in April 2020, [[Egypt]] ranked regionally third and globally fifth among the countries that carried out most executions in 2019. The country increasingly ignored international human rights concerns and criticism. In March 2021, Egypt executed 11 prisoners in a jail, who were convicted in cases of "murder, theft, and shooting".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/egypt-executes-11-prisoners-amid-criticism/2161705|title=Egypt executes 11 prisoners amid criticism|access-date=2 March 2021|website=Anadolu Agency}}</ref>

According to Amnesty International's 2021 report, at least 483 people were executed in 2020 despite the COVID-19 pandemic. The figure excluded the countries that classify death penalty data as state secret. The top five executioners for 2020 were China, Iran, Egypt, Iraq and Saudi Arabia.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2021/04/death-penalty-2020-despite-covid-19-some-countries-ruthlessly-pursued-death-sentences-and-executions/|title=Death penalty 2020: Despite Covid-19, some countries ruthlessly pursued death sentences and executions|access-date=21 April 2021|work=Amnesty International|date=21 April 2021}}</ref>

===Modern-day public opinion===
The public opinion on the death penalty varies considerably by country and by the crime in question. Countries where a majority of people are against execution include Norway, where only 25% support it.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/world/2011-07-27-Norway-punishment-lenient-death-penalty_n.htm |title=Can Norwegian punishment fit the crime? |work=USA Today |access-date=9 July 2014}}</ref> Most French, Finns, and Italians also oppose the death penalty.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/international-polls-and-studies |title=International Polls and Studies &#124; Death Penalty Information Center |publisher=Deathpenaltyinfo.org |access-date=9 July 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140519112648/http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/international-polls-and-studies |archive-date=19 May 2014}}</ref> In 2020, 55% of Americans supported the death penalty for an individual convicted of murder, down from 60% in 2016, 64% in 2010, 65% in 2006, and 68% in 2001.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://news.gallup.com/poll/1606/death-penalty.aspx |title=Death Penalty |date=24 October 2006 |publisher=Gallup |access-date=20 July 2021 |url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170918200018/http://news.gallup.com:80/poll/1606/Death-Penalty.aspx |archive-date=18 September 2017 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.gallup.com/poll/196676/death-penalty-support.aspx|title=U.S. Death Penalty Support at 60%|work=Gallup.com|access-date=20 May 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170319132515/http://www.gallup.com/poll/196676/death-penalty-support.aspx|archive-date=19 March 2017|language=en-us}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-15028665|work=BBC News|title=Troy Davis' execution and the limits of Twitter|date=23 September 2011|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110923093611/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-15028665|archive-date=23 September 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gallup.com/poll/144284/support-death-penalty-cases-murder.aspx|title=In U.S., 64% Support Death Penalty in Cases of Murder|date=8 November 2010|publisher=Gallup.com|access-date=30 April 2012|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120429084914/http://www.gallup.com/poll/144284/Support-Death-Penalty-Cases-Murder.aspx|archive-date=29 April 2012}}</ref> In 2020, 43% of Italians expressed support for the death penalty.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://thevision.com/attualita/pena-morte-italia/|title = Il 43% degli italiani vuole la pena di morte: Una conseguenza della crisi e della cultura dell'odio|date = 15 December 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.affaritaliani.it/coronavirus/covid-censis-la-meta-degli-italiani-a-favore-della-pena-di-morte-709965.html|title=Covid, 2020 anno della paura. 43% degli italiani a favore della pena di morte|date=4 December 2020|website=Affaritaliani.it}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.lastampa.it/topnews/lettere-e-idee/2020/12/05/news/pena-di-morte-il-43-degli-italiani-e-a-favore-l-odio-e-diventato-quotidiano-miseria-e-brutalita-nel-paese-di-beccaria-1.39620527 |title=Pena di morte, il 43% degli italiani è a favore: l'odio è diventato quotidiano. Miseria e brutalità nel Paese di Beccaria |work=La Stampa |language=it |last=Di Cesare |first=Donatella |date=5 December 2020 |access-date=16 November 2021 |url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201205051917/https://www.lastampa.it/topnews/lettere-e-idee/2020/12/05/news/pena-di-morte-il-43-degli-italiani-e-a-favore-l-odio-e-diventato-quotidiano-miseria-e-brutalita-nel-paese-di-beccaria-1.39620527 |archive-date=5 December 2020 }}</ref>

In Taiwan, polls and research have consistently shown strong support for the death penalty at 80%. This includes a survey conducted by the [[National Development Council (Taiwan)|National Development Council of Taiwan]] in 2016, showing that 88% of Taiwanese people disagree with abolishing the death penalty.<ref>{{cite web |title=八成八民眾不贊成廢除死刑 |url=https://www.ndc.gov.tw/News_Content.aspx?n=1A876BE08B130FDA&sms=C494EE4722A59019&s=EB579320CE2D72C6 |website=National Development Council |date = 21 April 2016|access-date=20 April 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=張 |first1=乃文 |title=ET民調／92.1％民眾支持維持死刑 93％挺政府立即執行 |url=https://www.ettoday.net/news/20191228/1612437.htm |access-date=20 April 2021 |agency=ETtoday |publisher=東森新媒體控股股份有限公司 |date=28 December 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=蕭 |first1=承訓 |last2=陳 |first2=志賢 |last3=郭 |first3=建伸 |last4=周 |first4=毓翔 |title=本報民調 8成反廢死！8成6促盡速執行死刑 |url=https://www.chinatimes.com/newspapers/20180717000504-260106?chdtv |access-date=20 April 2021 |agency=中國時報 |publisher=China Times Group |date=17 July 2018}}</ref> Its continuation of the practice drew criticism from local rights groups.<ref>{{cite news |title=Taiwan woman faces execution over fire that killed 46 |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/china/taiwan-woman-faces-execution-over-fire-that-killed-46/articleshow/89037410.cms |work=The Times of India |date=21 January 2022 |language=en}}</ref>

The support and sentencing of capital punishment has been growing in India in the 2010s<ref name="slate.com">{{cite web |last=Keating |first=Joshua |url=http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_world_/2014/04/04/gang_rapists_sentenced_to_death_in_india_is_capital_punishment_starting.html |title=Gang rapists sentenced to death in India: Is capital punishment making a global comeback? |publisher=Slate.com |date=4 April 2014 |access-date=9 July 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140706073215/http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_world_/2014/04/04/gang_rapists_sentenced_to_death_in_india_is_capital_punishment_starting.html |archive-date=6 July 2014}}</ref> due to anger over several recent brutal cases of rape, even though actual executions are comparatively rare.<ref name="slate.com"/> While support for the death penalty for murder is still high in China, executions have dropped precipitously, with 3,000 executed in 2012 versus 12,000 in 2002.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.economist.com/news/china/21582557-most-worlds-sharp-decline-executions-can-be-credited-china-strike-less-hard |title=The death penalty: Strike less hard – Most of the world's sharp decline in executions can be credited to China |newspaper=The Economist |date=3 August 2013 |access-date=9 July 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140803145708/http://www.economist.com/news/china/21582557-most-worlds-sharp-decline-executions-can-be-credited-china-strike-less-hard |archive-date=3 August 2014}}</ref> A poll in South Africa, where capital punishment is abolished, found that 76% of millennial South Africans support re-introduction of the death penalty due to increasing incidents of rape and murder.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/Youth-want-death-penalty-reinstated-20130222 |title=Youth 'want death penalty reinstated' |work=News24 |date=22 February 2013 |access-date=9 July 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140519221606/http://www.news24.com/southafrica/news/youth-want-death-penalty-reinstated-20130222 |archive-date=19 May 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://businesstech.co.za/news/government/86844/why-the-death-penalty-wont-solve-sas-crime-problem/|title=Why the death penalty won't solve SA's crime problem|date=9 May 2015|website=BusinessTech}}</ref>
A 2017 poll found younger Mexicans are more likely to support capital punishment than older ones.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://phys.org/news/2017-03-death-penalty-mexico.html |title=Study examines death penalty support in Mexico |date=28 March 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171228172630/https://phys.org/news/2017-03-death-penalty-mexico.html |archive-date=28 December 2017}}</ref> 57% of Brazilians support the death penalty. The age group that shows the greatest support for execution of those condemned is the 25 to 34-year-old category, in which 61% say they support it.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www1.folha.uol.com.br/internacional/en/brazil/2018/01/1949074-support-for-death-penalty-at-record-levels-among-brazilians-datafolha-finds.shtml/ |title=Folha de S.Paulo: Notícias, Imagens, Vídeos e Entrevistas |access-date=10 January 2018 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180109153132/http://www1.folha.uol.com.br/internacional/en/brazil/2018/01/1949074-support-for-death-penalty-at-record-levels-among-brazilians-datafolha-finds.shtml |archive-date=9 January 2018}}</ref>

A 2023 poll by Research Co. found that 54% of Canadians support reinstating the death penalty for murder in their country.<ref>{{cite web |title=Majority of Canadians are in favour of bringing back the death penalty, new poll suggests |url=https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2023/03/17/majority-of-canadians-are-in-favour-of-bringing-back-the-death-penalty-new-poll-suggests.html |website=[[Toronto Star]] |date=2023-03-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230327073227/https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2023/03/17/majority-of-canadians-are-in-favour-of-bringing-back-the-death-penalty-new-poll-suggests.html |archive-date=2023-03-27 |url-status=live |last1=Jiang |first1=Kevin}}</ref> In April 2021 a poll found that 54% of Britons said they would support reinstating the death penalty for those convicted of terrorism in the UK, while 23% of respondents said they would be opposed.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://redfieldandwiltonstrategies.com/slight-increase-in-support-for-death-penalty-for-convicted-terrorists/|title=Slight Increase in Support for Death Penalty for Convicted Terrorists|website=Redfieldandwiltonstrategies.com|date=7 April 2021|access-date=2 March 2022}}</ref> In 2020, an Ipsos/Sopra Steria survey showed that 55% of the French people support re-introduction of the death penalty; this was an increase from 44% in 2019.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.rfi.fr/en/france/20200917-new-poll-shows-jump-in-number-of-french-people-in-favour-of-the-death-penalty|title = Massive jump in number of French people in favour of the death penalty – poll|date = 17 September 2020}}</ref>

===Juvenile offenders===
{{category see also|Executed juvenile offenders}}
The death penalty for juvenile offenders (criminals aged under 18 years at the time of their crime although the legal or accepted definition of ''juvenile offender'' may vary from one jurisdiction to another) has become increasingly rare. Considering the age of majority is not 18 in some countries or has not been clearly defined in law, since 1990 ten countries have executed offenders who were considered juveniles at the time of their crimes: [[China]], [[Bangladesh]], [[Democratic Republic of Congo]], Iran, [[Iraq]], Japan, Nigeria, [[Pakistan]], [[Saudi Arabia]], [[Sudan]], the United States, and [[Yemen]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.internationaljusticeproject.org/juvWorld.cfm |title=Juvenile executions (except US) |publisher=Internationaljusticeproject.org |access-date=23 August 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110726182207/https://www.internationaljusticeproject.org/juvWorld.cfm |archive-date=26 July 2011}}</ref> China, Pakistan, the United States, Saudi Arabia, and Yemen have since raised the minimum age to 18.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2020-04-27 |title=Saudi Arabia ends executions for crimes committed by minors, says commission |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-52436335 |access-date=2023-09-19}}</ref> Amnesty International has recorded 61 verified executions since then, in several countries, of both juveniles and adults who had been convicted of committing their offences as juveniles.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/death-penalty/executions-of-child-offenders-since-1990 |title=Executions of juveniles since 1990 |publisher=Amnesty International |access-date=12 December 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121204044639/http://www.amnesty.org/en/death-penalty/executions-of-child-offenders-since-1990 |archive-date=4 December 2012 }}</ref> China does not allow for the execution of those under 18, but child executions have reportedly taken place.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/act50/015/2004/en/|title=Stop Child Executions! Ending the death penalty for child offenders|publisher=Amnesty International|year=2004|access-date=12 February 2008}}</ref>

[[File:Martyrs of Guernsey (cropped).jpg|thumb|Mother Catherine Cauchés (center) and her two daughters Guillemine Gilbert (left) and Perotine Massey (right) with her infant son burning for heresy]]
One of the youngest children ever to be executed was the infant son of Perotine Massey on or around 18 July 1556. His mother was one of the [[Guernsey Martyrs]] who was executed for heresy, and his father had previously fled the island. At less than one day old, he was ordered to be burned by Bailiff Hellier Gosselin, with the advice of priests nearby who said the boy should burn due to having inherited moral stain from his mother, who had given birth during her execution.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Butler|first=Sara M.|date=21 March 2018|title=Pleading the Belly: A Sparing Plea? Pregnant Convicts and the Courts in Medieval England|url=https://brill.com/view/book/edcoll/9789004364950/B9789004364950_009.xml|journal=Crossing Borders: Boundaries and Margins in Medieval and Early Modern Britain|language=en|pages=131–52|doi=10.1163/9789004364950_009|isbn=9789004364950}}</ref>

Since 1642 in [[Colonial history of the United States|Colonial America]] and in the United States, an estimated 365<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/article.php?scid=27&did=203#execsus |title=Execution of Juveniles in the U.S. and other Countries |publisher=Deathpenaltyinfo.org |access-date=23 August 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080513015221/http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/article.php?scid=27&did=203 |archive-date=13 May 2008 }}</ref> juvenile offenders were executed by various [[Colonial government in the Thirteen Colonies|colonial authorities]] and (after the [[American Revolution]]) the [[Federal government of the United States|federal government]].<ref>Rob Gallagher,{{cite web|url=http://users.bestweb.net/~rg/execution/JUVENILE.htm |title=Table of juvenile executions in British America/United States, 1642–1959 |access-date=5 February 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060615094320/http://users.bestweb.net/~rg/execution/JUVENILE.htm |archive-date=15 June 2006}}</ref> The U.S. Supreme Court abolished capital punishment for offenders under the age of 16 in ''[[Thompson v. Oklahoma]]'' (1988), and for all juveniles in ''[[Roper v. Simmons]]'' (2005).

In [[Prussia]], children under the age of 14 were exempted from the death penalty in 1794.<ref>General State Laws for the Prussian States (1794), Part 20, § 17, Part 1, § 25</ref> Capital punishment was cancelled by the [[Electorate of Bavaria]] in 1751 for children under the age of 11<ref>Codex Iuris Bavarici Criminalis (1751), § 14</ref> and by the [[Kingdom of Bavaria]] in 1813 for children and youth under 16 years.<ref>Bavarian Criminal Law (1813), Art. 99, par. 1 nr. 1</ref> In Prussia, the exemption was extended to youth under the age of 16 in 1851.<ref>Prussian Criminal Law (1851), § 43 nr. 1</ref> For the first time, all juveniles were excluded for the death penalty by the [[North German Confederation]] in 1871,<ref>North German Confederation Criminal Law (1871), § 57 par. 1 nr. 1</ref> which was continued by the [[German Empire]] in 1872.<ref>German Criminal Law (1872), § 57 par. 1 nr. 1</ref> In [[Nazi Germany]], capital punishment was reinstated for juveniles between 16 and 17 years in 1939.<ref>Kasseckert, Christian (2009), ''Straftheorie im Dritten Reich – Entwicklung des Strafgedankens im Dritten Reich'', Logos: Berlin, pp. 99–100</ref> This was broadened to children and youth from age 12 to 17 in 1943.<ref>Kasseckert, Christian (2009), ''Straftheorie im Dritten Reich – Entwicklung des Strafgedankens im Dritten Reich'', Logos: Berlin, p. 100</ref> The death penalty for juveniles was abolished by [[West Germany]], also generally, in 1949 and by [[East Germany]] in 1952.

In the Hereditary Lands, [[Austrian Silesia]], [[Bohemia]] and [[Moravia]] within the [[Habsburg monarchy]], capital punishment for children under the age of 11 was no longer foreseen by 1770.<ref>Constitutio Criminalis Theresiana (1770), § 6 par. 1, 2</ref> The death penalty was, also for juveniles, nearly abolished in 1787 except for emergency or military law, which is unclear in regard of those. It was reintroduced for juveniles above 14 years by 1803,<ref>Austrian Criminal Law (1803), § 2(d)</ref> and was raised by general criminal law to 20 years in 1852<ref>Austrian Criminal Law (1852), §§ 2 d), 53</ref> and this exemption<ref>Publication Patent of the Austrian Criminal Law (1852), Art. 1</ref> and the alike one of military law in 1855,<ref>Austrian Military Criminal Law (1855), § 121</ref> which may have been up to 14 years in wartime,<ref>Austrian Military Criminal Law (1855), § 3 d)</ref> were also introduced into all of the [[Austrian Empire]].

In the [[Helvetic Republic]], the death penalty for children and youth under the age of 16 was abolished in 1799<ref>Helvetic Punishing Law (1799), § 48 par. 2</ref> yet the country was already dissolved in 1803 whereas the law could remain in force if it was not replaced on cantonal level. In the [[canton of Bern]], all juveniles were exempted from the death penalty at least in 1866.<ref>Bern Criminal Law (1866), Art. 48</ref> In [[Canton of Fribourg|Fribourg]], capital punishment was generally, including for juveniles, abolished by 1849. In [[Canton of Ticino|Ticino]], it was abolished for youth and young adults under the age of 20 in 1816.<ref>Ticino Penal Code (1816), Art. 75</ref> In [[Canton of Zurich|Zurich]], the exclusion from the death penalty was extended for juveniles and young adults up to 19 years of age by 1835.<ref>Zurich Criminal Law (1835), §§ 81–82</ref> In 1942, the death penalty was almost deleted in criminal law, as well for juveniles, but since 1928 persisted in military law during wartime for youth above 14 years.<ref>Swiss Military Criminal Law (1928), Art. 14 par. 1</ref> If no earlier change was made in the given subject, by 1979 juveniles could no longer be subject to the death penalty in military law during wartime.<ref>Swiss Military Criminal Law (1979), Art. 14</ref>

Between 2005 and May 2008, Iran, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Sudan and Yemen were reported to have executed child offenders, the largest number occurring in Iran.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hrw.org/pub/2008/children/HRW.Juv.Death.Penalty.053008.pdf|title=HRW Report|publisher=Human Rights Watch|access-date=23 August 2010|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081113084648/http://www.hrw.org/pub/2008/children/HRW.Juv.Death.Penalty.053008.pdf|archive-date=13 November 2008}}</ref>

During [[Hassan Rouhani]]'s tenure as president of Iran from 2013 until 2021, at least 3,602 death sentences have been carried out. This includes the executions of 34 juvenile offenders.<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://iran-hrm.com/index.php/2018/10/08/cruel-and-inhuman-executions-in-iran/ | title=Annual report on the death penalty in Iran, October 2018| date=8 October 2018}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web | url=https://irannewswire.org/iran-executes-female-juvenile-offender-despite-grossly-unfair-legal-process/ | title=Iran executes female juvenile offender despite grossly unfair legal process| date=2 October 2018}}</ref>

The United Nations [[Convention on the Rights of the Child]], which forbids capital punishment for juveniles under article 37(a), has been signed by all countries and subsequently [[ratification|ratified]] by all signatories with the exception of the United States (despite the [[Supreme Court of the United States|US Supreme Court]] decisions abolishing the practice).<ref>UNICEF, [http://www.unicef.org/crc/index_30229.html Convention of the Rights of the Child – FAQ] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160125094459/http://www.unicef.org/crc/index_30229.html |date=25 January 2016 }}: "The Convention on the Rights of the Child is the most widely and rapidly ratified human rights treaty in history. Only the United States has not ratified this celebrated agreement. By signing the Convention, the United States has signaled its intention to ratify but has yet to do so."</ref> The [[United Nations Human Rights Council|UN Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights]] maintains that the death penalty for juveniles has become contrary to a [[jus cogens]] of [[customary international law]]. A majority of countries are also party to the U.N. [[International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights]] (whose Article 6.5 also states that "Sentence of death shall not be imposed for crimes committed by persons below eighteen years of age...").

Iran, despite its ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and [[International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights]], was the world's largest executioner of juvenile offenders, for which it has been the subject of broad international condemnation; the country's record is the focus of the [[Stop Child Executions Campaign]]. But on 10 February 2012, Iran's parliament changed controversial laws relating to the execution of juveniles. In the new legislation the age of 18 (solar year) would be applied to accused of both genders and juvenile offenders must be sentenced pursuant to a separate law specifically dealing with juveniles.<ref name="autogenerated2">{{cite web |date=10 February 2012 |title=Iran changes law for execution of juveniles |url=http://www.iranwpd.com/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=3066:iran-changes-law-for-execution-of-juveniles&Itemid=64 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120429231704/http://iranwpd.com/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=3066%3Airan-changes-law-for-execution-of-juveniles&Itemid=64 |archive-date=29 April 2012 |access-date=30 April 2012 |publisher=Iranwpd.com}}</ref><ref name="autogenerated1">{{cite web |title=مجازات قصاص برای افراد زیر 18 سال ممنوع شد |url=http://ghanoononline.ir/NSite/FullStory/News/?Serv=19&Id=16270 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120213111337/http://www.ghanoononline.ir/NSite/FullStory/News/?Serv=19&Id=16270 |archive-date=13 February 2012 |access-date=12 December 2012 |publisher=Ghanoononline.ir}}</ref> Based on the Islamic law which now seems to have been revised, girls at the age of 9 and boys at 15 of lunar year (11 days shorter than a solar year) are deemed fully responsible for their crimes.<ref name=autogenerated2 /> Iran accounted for two-thirds of the global total of such executions, and currently{{update after|2014|8|15}} has approximately 140 people considered as juveniles awaiting execution for crimes committed (up from 71 in 2007).<ref name=AP>[http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/world/2008-09-17-child-executions_N.htm Iranian activists fight child executions], Ali Akbar Dareini, [[Associated Press]], 17 September 2008. Retrieved 22 September 2008.</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=O'Toole|first=Pam|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6244126.stm|title=Iran rapped over child executions|work=BBC News|date=27 June 2007|access-date=12 December 2012|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121204021152/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6244126.stm|archive-date=4 December 2012}}</ref> The past executions of [[Mahmoud Asgari and Ayaz Marhoni|Mahmoud Asgari, Ayaz Marhoni]] and Makwan Moloudzadeh became the focus of Iran's child capital punishment policy and the judicial system that hands down such sentences.<ref name=Fox>{{cite web|url=https://www.foxnews.com/story/iran-does-far-worse-than-ignore-gays-critics-say|title=Iran Does Far Worse Than Ignore Gays, Critics Say|publisher=Foxnews.com|date=25 September 2007|access-date=12 December 2012|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121022014203/http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,297982,00.html|archive-date=22 October 2012}}</ref><ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7130380.stm Iranian hanged after verdict stay] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071207005203/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7130380.stm |date=7 December 2007 }}; BBCnews.co.uk; 6 December 2007; Retrieved 6 December 2007</ref> In 2023 Iran executed a minor who had knifed a man that fought him for following a girl in the street.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.iranintl.com/202311245025|title=اختصاصی؛ حمیدرضا آذری، اعدام شده در زندان سبزوار، کمتر از ۱۸ سال داشت|date=9 December 2023|website=ایران اینترنشنال}}</ref>

Saudi Arabia also executes criminals who were minors at the time of the offence.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/news-and-updates/news/juveniles-among-five-men-beheaded-saudi-arabia-20090512 |title=Juveniles among five men beheaded in Saudi Arabia |publisher=Amnesty International |access-date=11 February 2014 |url-status=dead |date= 12 May 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140311042739/http://www.amnesty.org/en/news-and-updates/news/juveniles-among-five-men-beheaded-saudi-arabia-20090512 |archive-date=11 March 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-21767667 |title= Saudi Arabia executes seven men for armed robbery |date=13 March 2013 |access-date=11 February 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131027024755/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-21767667 |archive-date=27 October 2013|work=BBC News }}</ref> In 2013, Saudi Arabia was the center of an international controversy after it executed [[Execution of Rizana Nafeek|Rizana Nafeek]], a Sri Lankan domestic worker, who was believed to have been 17 years old at the time of the crime.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-20959228 |title= Sri Lankan maid Rizana Nafeek beheaded in Saudi Arabia |date=9 January 2013 |access-date=11 February 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170116033909/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-20959228 |archive-date=16 January 2017|work=BBC News }}</ref> Saudi Arabia banned execution for minors, except for terrorism cases, in April 2020.<ref>{{cite web |title=Saudi Arabia ends death penalty for minors and floggings |url=https://news.yahoo.com/saudi-arabia-ends-death-penalty-151128365.html |website=news.yahoo.com |date=26 April 2020 |access-date=26 April 2020}}</ref>

Japan has not executed juvenile criminals after August 1997, when they executed [[Norio Nagayama]], a [[spree killer]] who had been convicted of shooting four people dead in the late 1960s. Nagayama's case created the eponymously named [[Norio Nagayama|''Nagayama standards'']], which take into account factors such as the number of victims, brutality and social impact of the crimes. The standards have been used in determining whether to apply the death sentence in murder cases. Teruhiko Seki, convicted of murdering four family members including a 4-year-old daughter and raping a 15-year-old daughter of a family in 1992, became the second inmate to be hanged for a crime committed as a minor in the first such execution in 20 years after Nagayama on 19 December 2017.<ref>{{Cite web|date=19 December 2017|url=https://english.kyodonews.net/news/2017/12/881eeda07930-japan-hangs-2-death-row-inmates-sources.html |title=Japan hangs 2 inmates including man who killed 4 as minor |publisher=Kyodo News|access-date=24 July 2018}}</ref> [[Takayuki Fukuda|Takayuki Otsuki]], who was convicted of raping and strangling a 23-year-old woman and subsequently strangling her 11-month-old daughter to death on 14 April 1999, when he was 18, is another inmate sentenced to death, and his request for retrial has been rejected by the [[Supreme Court of Japan]].<ref>{{cite news|date=30 October 2012|url=https://japantoday.com/category/crime/man-sentenced-to-death-for-killing-mother-baby-daughter-in-1999-seeks-retrial |title=Man sentenced to death for killing mother, baby daughter in 1999 seeks retrial |newspaper=Japan Today|access-date=24 July 2018}}</ref>

There is evidence that child executions are taking place in the parts of Somalia controlled by the [[Islamic Courts Union]] (ICU). In October 2008, a girl, [[Stoning of Aisha Ibrahim Duhulow|Aisha Ibrahim Dhuhulow]] was buried up to her neck at a football stadium, then stoned to death in front of more than 1,000 people. Somalia's established [[Transitional Federal Government]] announced in November 2009 (reiterated in 2013)<ref name="Somalia to Ratify UN Child Rights Treaty">[http://allafrica.com/stories/201311210066.html "Somalia to Ratify UN Child Rights Treaty"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203012729/http://allafrica.com/stories/201311210066.html |date=3 December 2013 }}, allAfrica.com, 20 November 2013.</ref> that it plans to ratify the Convention on the Rights of the Child. This move was lauded by [[UNICEF]] as a welcome attempt to secure children's rights in the country.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-11/20/content_12510818.htm|title=UNICEF lauds move by Somalia to ratify child convention|agency=Xinhua News Agency|date=20 November 2009|access-date=23 August 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100113110138/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-11/20/content_12510818.htm|archive-date=13 January 2010}}</ref>

===Methods===
{{Main|List of methods of capital punishment}}
[[File:Rättvisa skipas.jpg|thumb|[[Red Guards (Finland)|Red Guard]] prisoners being executed by the [[White Guard (Finland)|Whites]] in [[Varkaus]], [[North Savonia]] during the 1918 [[Finnish Civil War]].]]
The following methods of execution have been used by various countries:<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nutzworld.com/amerikaarticles/methods_of_execution_by_country.htm|title=Methodes of execution by country|publisher=Nutzworld.com|access-date=23 February 2011|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110714212707/http://www.nutzworld.com/amerikaarticles/methods_of_execution_by_country.htm|archive-date=14 July 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/methods-execution|title=Methods of execution – Death Penalty Information Center|publisher=Deathpenaltyinfo.org|access-date=23 February 2011|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110225054450/http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/methods-execution|archive-date=25 February 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://translate.google.no/translate?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amnesty.no%2Fd%25C3%25B8dsstraffbulletin-nr-4-2010 |title=Death penalty Bulletin No. 4-2010|language=no|publisher=Translate.google.no|access-date=23 February 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://translate.google.no/translate?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amnesty.no%2Faktuelt%2Fflere-nyheter%2Farkiv-bakgrunn%2Fopplysninger-om-d%25C3%25B8dsstraff|title=Information on Death Penalty |language=no|publisher=Amnesty International|access-date=23 February 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://executions.justsickshit.com/execution-methods-by-country/|title=execution methods by country|publisher=Executions.justsickshit.com|access-date=23 February 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101114045725/http://executions.justsickshit.com/execution-methods-by-country/|archive-date=14 November 2010}}</ref>
* Hanging ([[Capital punishment in Afghanistan|Afghanistan]], [[Capital punishment in Iran|Iran]], [[Capital punishment in Iraq|Iraq]], [[Capital punishment in Japan|Japan]], [[Capital punishment in South Korea|South Korea]], [[Capital punishment in Malaysia|Malaysia]], [[Capital punishment in Nigeria|Nigeria]], [[Capital punishment in Sudan|Sudan]], [[Capital punishment in Pakistan|Pakistan]], [[State of Palestine|Palestinian National Authority]], [[Capital punishment in Israel|Israel]], [[Capital punishment in Yemen|Yemen]], [[Capital punishment in Egypt|Egypt]], [[Capital punishment in India|India]], [[Capital punishment in Oman|Oman]], Myanmar, [[Capital punishment in Singapore|Singapore]], [[Capital punishment in Sri Lanka|Sri Lanka]], [[Capital punishment in Syria|Syria]], Zimbabwe, Malawi, Liberia)
* Shooting (the [[Capital punishment in the People's Republic of China|People's Republic of China]], [[Capital punishment in the Republic of China|Republic of China]], [[Capital punishment in Vietnam|Vietnam]] (until 2011), [[Capital punishment in Belarus|Belarus]], Ethiopia, Nigeria, [[Capital punishment in Somalia|Somalia]], [[Somaliland]],<ref>{{Cite web |last=Halstead |first=Chelsea |date=2024-07-31 |title=Calling for Somaliland to Release Abshir Saleban Hussein, a Child, from Death Row — Cornell Center on the Death Penalty Worldwide |url=https://dpw.lawschool.cornell.edu/calling-for-somaliland-to-release-abshir-saleban-hussein-a-child-from-death-row/ |access-date=2025-02-13 |language=en-US}}</ref> [[Capital punishment in North Korea|North Korea]], [[Capital punishment in Indonesia|Indonesia]], the [[Capital punishment in the United Arab Emirates|UAE]], [[Capital punishment in Saudi Arabia|Saudi Arabia]], Bahrain, [[Capital punishment in Qatar|Qatar]], [[Capital punishment in Oman|Oman]], [[Capital punishment in Yemen|Yemen]], and in the US states of [[Capital punishment in Oklahoma|Oklahoma]], [[Capital punishment in Utah|Utah]], and [[Capital punishment in South Carolina|South Carolina]])
* Lethal injection (United States, [[Capital punishment in Guatemala|Guatemala]], [[Capital punishment in Thailand|Thailand]], the People's Republic of China, Vietnam (after 2011))
* Beheading (Saudi Arabia)
* Stoning (Nigeria, Sudan)
* Electrocution and gas inhalation (some U.S. states, but only if the prisoner requests it or if lethal injection is unavailable)
*Inert gas asphyxiation (some U.S. states: [[Capital punishment in Alabama|Alabama]], [[Capital punishment in Louisiana|Louisiana]])

===Public execution===
{{main|Public execution}}
A public execution is a form of capital punishment which "members of the general public may voluntarily attend". This definition excludes the presence of a small number of witnesses randomly selected to assure executive accountability.<ref name=blum>{{cite journal |last=Blum |first=Steven A. |date=Winter 1992 |title=Public Executions: Understand the 'Cruel and Unusual Punishments' Clause |url=http://www.hastingsconlawquarterly.org/archives/V19/I2/Blum.pdf |journal=Hastings Constitutional Law Quarterly |volume=19 |issue=2 |page=415 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140326225628/http://www.hastingsconlawquarterly.org/archives/V19/I2/Blum.pdf |archive-date=26 March 2014}}</ref> While today the great majority of the world considers public executions to be distasteful and most countries have outlawed the practice, throughout much of history executions were performed publicly as a means for the state to demonstrate "its power before those who fell under its jurisdiction be they criminals, enemies, or political opponents". Additionally, it afforded the public a chance to witness "what was considered a great spectacle".<ref>{{cite book |last=Cawthorne |first=Nigel |date=2006 |title=Public Executions: From Ancient Rome to the Present Day |url=https://archive.org/details/publicexecutions0000cawt/page/6 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/publicexecutions0000cawt/page/6 6–7] |publisher=Chartwell Books |isbn=978-0-7858-2119-9 }}</ref>

Social historians note that beginning in the 20th century in the U.S. and western Europe, death in general became increasingly shielded from public view, occurring more and more behind the closed doors of the hospital.<ref name=chambliss>{{cite book|author=William J. Chambliss|title=Corrections|publisher=SAGE Publications|year=2011|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NMF1AwAAQBAJ&pg=PA4|pages=4–5|isbn=9781452266435}}</ref> Executions were likewise moved behind the walls of the penitentiary.<ref name=chambliss/> The last formal public executions occurred in 1868 in Britain, in 1936 in the U.S. and in 1939 in France.<ref name=chambliss/>

According to Amnesty International, in 2012, "public executions were known to have been carried out in Iran, North Korea, Saudi Arabia and Somalia".<ref>{{cite news |date=12 April 2013 |title=Death penalty statistics, country by country |url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2011/mar/29/death-penalty-countries-world |newspaper=The Guardian |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151231222052/http://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2011/mar/29/death-penalty-countries-world |archive-date=31 December 2015}}</ref> There have been reports of public executions carried out by state and non-state actors in [[Hamas]]-controlled [[Gaza Strip|Gaza]], Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Yemen.<ref>{{cite news |date=22 August 2014 |title=Haunting Images Emerge of Hamas Public Execution of 18 Alleged Collaborators |url=http://www.algemeiner.com/2014/08/22/haunting-images-emerge-of-hamas-public-execution-of-18-alleged-collaborators-photos/ |newspaper=The Algemeiner |access-date=14 September 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140915072828/http://www.algemeiner.com/2014/08/22/haunting-images-emerge-of-hamas-public-execution-of-18-alleged-collaborators-photos/ |archive-date=15 September 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.foxnews.com/world/isis-extremist-reportedly-kills-his-mother-in-public-execution-in-syria/ |title=ISIS extremist reportedly kills his mother in public execution in Syria |work=Fox News |date=8 January 2016 |access-date=30 May 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160531212145/http://www.foxnews.com/world/2016/01/08/isis-extremist-executes-his-mother-in-syria-for-urging-him-to-flee-group.html |archive-date=31 May 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/2012/07/08/world/asia/afghanistan-public-execution/ |title=Video: Taliban shoot woman 9 times in public execution as men cheer |work=CNN|date=9 July 2012 |access-date=30 May 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160602090138/http://www.cnn.com/2012/07/08/world/asia/afghanistan-public-execution/ |archive-date=2 June 2016}}</ref> Executions which can be classified as public were also carried out in the U.S. states of Florida and Utah {{as of|1992|lc=yes}}.<ref name=blum/>