The question as to whether or not it is morally acceptable for the state to execute people, and if so under what circumstances, has been debated for centuries.
The ethical problems involved include the general moral issues of punishment with the added problem of whether it is ever morally right to deprive a human being of life.

Capital punishment is the practice of executing someone as punishment for a specific crime after a proper legal trial.

It can only be used by a state, so when non-state organisations speak of having 'executed' a person they have actually committed a murder.

It is usually only used as a punishment for particularly serious types of murder, but in some countries treason, types of fraud, adultery and rape are capital crimes.

The phrase 'capital punishment' comes from the Latin word for the head. A 'corporal' punishment, such as flogging, takes its name from the Latin word for the body.

Capital punishment is used in many countries around the world. According to Amnesty International figures as at May 2007, 68 countries and territories retain the death penalty, although many never actually use it. China executes the most people per year overall, with an estimated figure of 1,010 in 2006. Amnesty International also states that in 2006, Iran executed 177 people, Pakistan 82, Iraq and Sudan both at least 65 and that there were 53 executions in the USA.

Based on public reports available, Amnesty International estimated that at least 1,010 people were executed in China during the year [2006], although these figures are only the tip of the iceberg. Credible sources suggest that between 7,500 to 8,000 people were executed in 2006. The official statistics remain a state secret, making monitoring and analysis problematic.
Amnesty International, May 2007
In March 2004 a delegate at the National People's Congress said that "nearly 10,000" people are executed per year in China.
Amnesty International, 2006
There is now steadily increasing support for abolishing capital punishment.

In April 1999, the United Nations Human Rights Commission passed the Resolution Supporting Worldwide Moratorium on Executions. The first World Congress against the death penalty was held in Strasbourg in June 2001. The World Coalition against the Death Penalty was created in Rome in 2002, and 10th October 2006 is World Day against the Death Penalty.

Details of which countries are abolitionist and which are retentionist can be found on the Amnesty website.