AT LEAST 2,390 people were executed in 25 countries last year, according to a report published on Tuesday March 24th by Amnesty International, a human-rights group. China carried out at least 1,718 executions, 72% of the global total—the actual number (as in many other countries) is believed to be much higher. But if the populations of the 15 countries that carry out the most executions are taken into account, Iran and Saudi Arabia emerge as more zealous employers of capital punishment than China.

AFP