Lebanon Abolishes Death Penalty in Historic Parliamentary Vote
11 sources across 9 countries
Who reported this
- Le Monde
- France 24
- Der Spiegel
- Frankfurter Allgemeine
- Folha de S.Paulo
- South China Morning Post
- Aftenposten
- Business Day
- El Pais
- Neue Zuercher Zeitung
- Associated Press
What the colours mean
- Left
- Centre-left
- Centre
- Centre-right
- Right
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Lebanon's parliament has voted to abolish the death penalty, making it the first Arab nation to formally remove capital punishment from its penal code. A majority of the 128 member parliament approved the legislation on Tuesday, although the parliamentary bloc of Hezbollah voted against the measure. Justice Minister Adel Nassar described the vote as a historic step for the country.
Under the new law, crimes committed before the legislation takes effect will be punished by life imprisonment. For offenses committed after the law is enacted, the penalty will be aggravated life imprisonment with forced labor. While the country has maintained an unofficial moratorium on executions since 2004, courts continued to issue death sentences. Estimates from the Lebanese Association for Civil Rights indicate that approximately 84 people were on death row prior to this change.
Human rights organizations, including Human Rights Watch, have praised the decision as a monumental step for human rights. Minister Nassar also noted that the abolition would prevent other countries from rejecting Lebanese extradition requests on the grounds that the suspect might face the death penalty. However, some observers and legal analysts have questioned the practical application of aggravated forced labor, citing Lebanon's limited state resources and severely overcrowded prisons.
The vote occurs alongside parliamentary debates regarding a controversial general amnesty law, which could reduce sentences for drug offenders and militants. This has led to protests from families of soldiers killed by Islamist groups who had hoped for executions rather than reduced sentences. Some center-left reporting highlighted the regional contrast, noting that this move occurs while other regional powers like Israel and Jordan have recently maintained or expanded the use of capital punishment.
How each side framed it
- Centre-left
- These outlets framed the event as a victory for human rights and contrasted Lebanon's progress with a perceived regional trend toward increased capital punishment.
- Centre
- These outlets emphasized the legal implications for extradition and the broader context of prison reform and the general amnesty law.
- Centre-right
- These outlets focused on the legislative details, the opposition from Hezbollah, and the practical difficulties of implementing forced labor in overcrowded prisons.
Sources
- Centre-right Aftenposten: Lebanon has abolished the death penalty
- Centre Associated Press: Lebanon abolishes death penalty in landmark parliament vote - AP News
- Centre-right Business Day: Lebanon becomes first Arab state to abolish death penalty
- Centre-left Der Spiegel: Lebanon abolishes the death penalty
- Centre-left El Pais: Lebanon becomes the first country in the Middle East to ban the death penalty
- Centre Folha de S.Paulo: Lebanon becomes first Middle East country to abolish the death penalty
- Centre France 24: 🔴 Lebanon votes for the abolition of the death penalty, a first in the Middle East
- Centre-right Frankfurter Allgemeine: Majority in Parliament: Lebanon abolishes death penalty
- Centre-left Le Monde: Lebanon adopts the abolition of the death penalty, a first in the Near and Middle East
- Centre-right Neue Zuercher Zeitung: Lebanon's parliament abolishes the death penalty
- Centre-right South China Morning Post: Lebanon becomes first Arab nation to abolish death penalty
100% of the statements in this article were traced back to the source articles listed above.