Kuwait has executed 25 Indian nationals in the past five years.
The postponement of the Nimisha Priya's execution scheduled for July 16 by Yemen brought a wave of relief for the 38-year-old nurse from Kerala and her family.
Priya is incarcerated in Sana'a, the capital which is under the control of Iran-backed Houthis since 2014.
The nurse was sentenced to death for murdering a Yemeni national and business partner in 2017.
In 2020, a Yemeni court handed her the death sentence and the country's Supreme Judicial Council dismissed her appeal in November 2023.
According to PTI, sources revealed that the Government of India has made concerted efforts in recent days to seek more time for Priya's family to reach a 'mutually agreeable' solution with the other party.
Indian officials have been in regular touch with the local jail authorities and the prosecutor's office, leading to securing the postponement, the sources told PTI.
India does not have diplomatic relations with the Houthis and does not have an embassy in Sana'a. According to CNN, diplomatic affairs related to Yemen are handled through the Indian embassy in Djibouti City, across the Red Sea.
54 Indian citizens have been sentenced to death by foreign courts as per the ministry of external affairs in a response in the Rajya Sabha in February 2025.
50 were executed in the last five years.
Three Indians, including a woman, were executed in the UAE in February 2025.
Kuwait has executed the highest number -- 25 in the past five years.
Saudi Arabia 9, Zimbabwe 7, Malaysia 5 and Jamaica 1.
The UAE has the highest number of Indians on death row [29].
In a reply in the Rajya Sabha on March 20, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh said that no data on Indians executed was shared by the UAE.
One Indian has been sentenced to death by lethal injection in the United States since 2018. The execution has not been carried out yet.
As per informal information available with the Indian mission in UAE, the minister said no Indians have been executed from 2020 to 2024.
However, 3 Indians were executed in the UAE in February 2025.
Shahzadi Khan, 33, from UP was executed in UAE in February. Shahzadi worked in Abu Dhabi and was convicted for the death of an infant under her care.
Shortly after her execution, Muhammed Rinash Arangilottu and Muraleedharan Perumthatta Valappil from Kerala were executed for murder.
Arangilottu was convicted for the murder of a local. Valappil was sentenced for killing an Indian.
The news of their deaths was conveyed after the execution.
10,152 Indians are currently incarcerated abroad across 86 countries.
The highest number of Indian nationals are imprisoned in Saudi Arabia [2,633], the UAE [2,588] and Nepal [1,317].
As per information available with the MEA on February 13, 2025, the number of Indians on death row in the following countries are:
United Arab Emirates - 29
Saudi Arabia - 12
Kuwait - 3
Qatar - 1
Three Indians were executed in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia in 2024.
One Indian was executed in Zimbabwe in 2024.
In 2023, five Indians were executed in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, 3 in Zimbabwe and one in Malaysia.
Last year, Qatar released 8 retired Indian Navy officers who were imprisoned in the country.
The naval personnel were sentenced to death which was later commuted to differing prison terms. The officers were provided consular access and eventually freed after nearly two years.
Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff