The deadliest wait: five women on death row

"There are between 500 and 1,000 women on death row in at least 42 countries, according to a 2023 report by the World Coalition Against the Death Penalty. The countries that execute the most women are also the countries that execute the most people, namely China, Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia. According to Amnesty International, in 2024 an unknown number of women were executed in China,"

"Certain countries in the Gulf and south-east Asia severely criminalise drug trafficking and have a high proportion of women awaiting execution. While some women engage in the drug trade of their own volition, a narrower range of choices for others, along with poverty, coercion, violence, manipulation and the survival needs of a family, are significant factors in their involvement. Not all countries with the death penalty carry out executions."

Between 500 and 1,000 women are on death row in at least 42 countries. Executions of women are concentrated in China, Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia. Amnesty International recorded executions of women in 2024 in China (unknown number), Egypt (2), Iran (30), Iraq (1), Saudi Arabia (9) and Yemen (2). Some states, including China, North Korea and Vietnam, do not publish accurate data. The main crimes resulting in female death sentences are murder and drug trafficking. Mandatory death penalties for murder and failure to recognise gender-based violence as mitigating factors increase women's vulnerability to capital sentences. Poverty, coercion, violence and family survival needs often drive women's involvement in the drug trade. Women on death row commonly face harsher prison conditions, increased security measures and solitary confinement. Christa Pike is the only woman on Tennessee's death row and was sentenced for a murder committed at age 18 while living with severe untreated mental illness; she was one of 47 women on death row in the US as of October 2025.

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