The use of the death penalty has reached its highest level worldwide since 2015, London-based human rights group Amnesty International said on Wednesday. Some 1,153 people were executed in 2023 across 16 countries, Amnesty said in a press release. The figure was up 31% from 883 the previous year. The most executions – almost three-quarters of the global total – were carried out in Iran. At least 853 people were executed in the the Middle Eastern country in 2023, an increase of 48% on the previous year. In second place was Saudi Arabia with 172 executions, representing 15% of the global total. …