Historic Move: Lebanon Abolishes Death Penalty, Hezbollah Opposes
The Lebanese parliament has approved a law abolishing the death penalty, replacing it with life imprisonment with hard labor. The Hezbollah faction was the only one to vote against the measure, making Lebanon the first Arab nation to take this step.
The Parliament of Lebanon approved a historic move on Tuesday to abolish the death penalty, making the "Land of the Cedars" the first country in the Arab world to do so. Under the new law, the death penalty will be replaced by life imprisonment with hard labor.
Lebanon had effectively frozen the use of the death penalty since 2004, but the provision remained in the law books. Over the years, dozens of death sentences were handed down, though they were either delayed or commuted. During the vote in the 128-member parliament, the majority of lawmakers supported the abolition, with Hezbollah being the only faction to oppose it.
Lebanese Minister of Justice Adel Nassar described the approval as a "historic step." Human rights organizations, which had long campaigned for the total abolition of the practice, also welcomed the vote. Ramzi Kaiss, a researcher on Lebanese affairs at Human Rights Watch, stated:
"Lebanon is signaling a final break from a cruel punishment that should never have been imposed. The death penalty is unique in its cruelty and finality, and it is full of arbitrariness, bias, and errors."
It remains unclear how the "aggravated hard labor" sentence, now established as a substitute, will be implemented, with some members of parliament admitting the conditions are not yet defined. While hard labor is a legal concept in Lebanon, it has been rarely applied in recent years due to a lack of resources in the country's overcrowded prisons, which are strained by economic difficulties.
The abolition comes as parliament debates a controversial general amnesty law—the largest since the end of the 15-year civil war in 1990—which could lead to reduced sentences and the early release of convicted militants and drug traffickers. Families of Lebanese soldiers and security personnel killed by Islamist organizations have protested against the amnesty, hoping to see perpetrators face execution rather than reduced prison terms.
Hezbollah explained its opposition by stating it refuses to support the abolition law before the passage of the amnesty bill. According to the group, this would result in a "double reduction" of sentences: first, a death sentence would be converted to 28 years, and subsequently reduced to 17 years under the amnesty. Hezbollah argues this is far too lenient for those who harmed its operatives.
