Saudi Arabia, Ethiopia, Turkmenistan.

Today's three stories you should know.

Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia, one of the world’s most prolific executioners, has put to death a staggering 81 men in one day. The group were killed for a variety of crimes, the state news agency said, including terrorism. Some had been convicted of belonging to ISIS, al-Qaeda or the Houthi rebel group Saudi is battling in Yemen. The anti-death penalty group Reprieve tweeted: “The world should know by now that when Mohammed Bin Salman promises reform, bloodshed is bound to follow,” referring to the country’s crown prince. Rights groups say trials in the kingdom are rarely fair.

More from the New Arab here.

Ethiopia

The situation in Ethiopia remains heartbreaking. Under-reported from the beginning, the conflict has, as the world focuses on the war in Ukraine, now slipped almost entirely from view. In recent days, a video began circulating on social media that appeared to show Ethiopian government forces burning a man alive. Journalists have since verified the footage and it also appears that two to three men may have been burned alive before the incident captured on camera. Separately, World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom, himself an Ethiopian, has warned again that a de-facto government blockade on the country’s Tigray region is depriving seven million people of food aid and medical care. Ethiopia cannot be forgotten.

Verification thread here. Tedros Adhanom statement here.

Turkmenistan

Voters in Turkmenistan are taking part in an election today, but the son of outgoing President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov is poised to win a poll that most observers see as nothing more than window-dressing. Little is known about the policies or personality of 40-year-old Serdar Berdymukhamedov. His father has ruled the country in an authoritarian, and often highly eccentric, manner since 2006.

More from Al Jazeera here.