The number of executions is increasing

THE death penalty divides public opinion in America and has mostly ended in Europe. But around the world, the number of places that carry out capital punishment and the number of people killed is rising. Executions took place in 22 countries last year, according to Amnesty International, a human-rights lobby. In America there were 39 executions—more than the known number of executions in Yemen, Sudan or Somalia. Countries whose gallows had been left unused for long periods put prisoners to death, notably Indonesia (for the first time in four years), Kuwait (in six years) and Nigeria (in seven years). Amnesty says it knows of at least 778 executions that took place last year, a 14% increase on 2012. But those figures grossly undercount the extent of capital punishment. They exclude China, which does not release official numbers but whose annual execution tally is believed to be in the thousands. Amnesty reckons that 23,392 people are living under death sentences worldwide for crimes including treason, embezzlement and adultery.