Report: 1,252 people executed worldwide

LONDON, April 15 (UPI) -- At least 1,200 people were executed in 2007, and many more were killed by the state in secret, a Tuesday report by London-based Amnesty International said.

The figures indicate at least 1,252 people were executed in 24 countries, and at least 3,347 were sentenced to death in 51 countries, the organization's Death Sentences and Executions Report in 2007. Up to 27,500 people worldwide were estimated to be on death row.

The figures show an increase in executions in several countries. Amnesty International said Iran executed at least 317 people, Saudi Arabia, 143; and Pakistan 135, compared to 177 executions, 39 executions and 82 executions, respectively, in 2006.

Five countries -- China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and the United States -- were responsible for 81 percent of known executions, the organization said.

China, which Amnesty International said was the world's leading executioner, classifies the death penalty as a state secret.

"The secretive use of the death penalty must stop; the veil of secrecy surrounding the death penalty must be lifted," Amnesty International said in the report. "Many governments claim that executions take place with public support. People therefore have a right to know what is being done in their name."