( CNN ) Governments around the world are using the threat of terrorism -- real or perceived -- to advance executions , Amnesty International alleges in its annual report on the death penalty . `` The dark trend of governments using the death penalty in a futile attempt to tackle real or imaginary threats to state security and public safety was stark last year , '' said Salil Shetty , Amnesty 's Secretary General in a release . `` It is shameful that so many states around the world are essentially playing with people 's lives -- putting people to death for 'terrorism ' or to quell internal instability on the ill-conceived premise of deterrence . '' The report , `` Death Sentences and Executions 2014 , '' cites the example of Pakistan lifting a six-year moratorium on the execution of civilians following the horrific attack on a school in Peshawar in December . China is also mentioned , as having used the death penalty as a tool in its `` Strike Hard '' campaign against terrorism in the restive far-western province of Xinjiang . The annual report catalogs the use of state-sanctioned killing as a punitive measure across the globe , and this year 's edition contains some mixed findings . On one hand , the number of executions worldwide has gone down by almost 22 % on the previous year . At least 607 people were executed around the world in 2014 , compared to 778 in 2013 . Amnesty 's figures do not include statistics on executions carried out in China , where information on the practice is regarded as a state secret . Belarus and Vietnam , too , do not release data on death penalty cases . `` The long-term trend is definitely positive -- we are seeing a decrease in the number of executions ( worldwide ) , '' Audrey Gaughran , Amnesty 's Director of Global Issues , told CNN . `` A number of countries are closer to abolition , and there are some signs that some countries will be abolitionist by 2015 . ( There are ) signals of a world that is nearing abolition . '' While the report notes some encouraging signs , it also highlights a marked increase in the number of people sentenced to death in 2014 . At least 2,466 people globally are confirmed to have been handed the sentence last year , an increase of 28 % compared with 2013 . The report notes that the spike in sentencing is attributable to mass-sentencing in countries including Egypt and Nigeria , `` against scores of people in some cases . '' The organization found `` positive developments '' worldwide , with most regions seeming to show reductions in the number of executions . Opinion : Sharp spike in death sentences . Sub-Saharan Africa , for example , saw a 28 % fall in reported cases , and executions recorded in the Middle East and North Africa were down 23 % compared to 2013 . `` Even though we 've highlighted some of the negative developments ... I think we would always highlight that there are positive developments , '' Gaughran said . `` Across the board , with the exception of Europe and Central Asia there were fewer reports of executions in every region . '' The resumption of the use of capital punishment in Belarus -- the only country in Europe and Central Asia to execute people -- after a two year hiatus spoiled an near-universal decrease in countries using the death penalty by region . The United States has the dubious distinction of being the only country in the Americas to conduct executions , but the number of convicts put to death here fell slightly , from 39 in 2013 to 35 in 2014 . The state of Washington also imposed a moratorium on executions last year . The U.S. remains one of the worst offenders for imposing capital punishment , with only Iran ( 289+ ) , Iraq ( 61+ ) , and Saudi Arabia ( 90+ ) executing more people in 2014 . While figures are not available , Amnesty estimates that China also executes `` thousands '' of prisoners each year , `` more than the rest of the world put together . '' The report also highlights the imperfections in the judiciary processes that lead to many sentenced to death . `` In the majority of countries where people were sentenced to death or executed , the death penalty was imposed after proceedings that did not meet international fair trial standards , '' the report stated . `` In 2014 Amnesty International raised particular concerns in relation to court proceedings in Afghanistan , Bangladesh , China , Egypt , Iran , Iraq , North Korea , Pakistan , Saudi Arabia and Sri Lanka . '' The United Nations Secretary-General , Ban Ki-moon , last year stressed the need to move toward abolition of capital punishment . `` The taking of life is too irreversible for one human being to inflict it on another , '' he said , in marking World Day against Death Penalty in October . `` We must continue to argue strongly that the death penalty is unjust and incompatible with fundamental human rights . '' Amnesty estimates that at least 19,094 people were believed to be on death row at the end of 2014 .
Amnesty 's annual death penalty report catalogs encouraging signs , but setbacks in numbers of those sentenced to death . Organization claims that governments around the world are using the threat of terrorism to advance executions . The number of executions worldwide has gone down by almost 22 % compared with 2013 , but death sentences up by 28 % .