Large numbers of death sentences were carried out for non-violent crimes such as drug offences last year

There has been "positive progress" in the campaign against the death penalty globally.

Last year saw a small drop in the overall number of executions around the world, with 993 executions in 23 countries, down by 4% from 1,032 executions in 2016.

The figures, contained in a new 48-page Amnesty International report, Death Sentences and Executions in 2017, also show a 17% fall in the number of people sentenced to death during 2017, with 2,591 death sentences in 53 countries, down from a record-high of 3,117 recorded in 2016.

Overall, at least 21,919 people are known to be under sentence of death globally.

However, Amnesty warned that these figures do not include the thousands of death sentences and executions believed to have been imposed and implemented in China, where figures are a state secret.

Worryingly, Amnesty’s report also shows how large numbers of death sentences were carried out for non-violent crimes such as drug offences during 2017.

Fifteen countries imposed death sentences for drug-related offences, in defiance of international law, and there were drug-related executions in four countries: China, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Singapore.

In Iran, 40% of the more than 500 executions were for drugs offences, while similarly 40% of Saudi Arabia’s nearly 150 executions were for drugs offences. Meanwhile, Singapore hanged eight people in 2017, all for drug-related offences.

Naomi McAuliffe, Amnesty International’s Scotland programme director, said: “We have seen positive progress in our global campaign to end the death penalty in every country but we still have a lot of work to do.

“There are a number of leaders who cling to the death penalty as a quick-fix for social ills. President Duterte continues to call for the reintroduction of the death penalty in the Philippines for drug-related offences despite it being a violation of the country’s obligations under international law.

“Using the death penalty to tackle drug use in the Middle East and Asia-Pacific is both ethically wrong and has not proven to be a deterrent.

“We remain committed to our worldwide campaign to end the ultimate cruel and unusual punishment. The tide of history may be turning in our favour but we will fight for every step on the way towards complete abolition.”

Amnesty recorded several cases of people facing the death penalty after “confessing” to crimes under torture or other ill-treatment in Bahrain, China, Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia. In Iran and Iraq, some of these “confessions” were broadcast live on television.

Overall, the number of executing countries, 23, remained the same as in 2016, though Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait and the UAE all resumed executions after a gap. In Egypt, recorded death sentences increased by around 70% compared to 2016.

Excluding China, the vast majority of executions in 2017 (84%) were carried out in just four countries: Iran, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Pakistan.

In a positive development, Mongolia abolished the death penalty for all crimes, taking the number of countries to have fully abolished capital punishment to 106.

Meanwhile, after Guatemala became abolitionist for ordinary crimes such as murder, the number of countries to have now abolished the death penalty in law or practice stands at 142.