Lebanon parliament votes to abolish death penalty

The Lebanese parliament has approved a bill to abolish the death penalty, marking the first such move in the Middle East. On Tuesday, a majority of the MPs in the 128-seat parliament voted in favor of the measure, despite opposition from Hezbollah's parliamentary bloc. The legislation will now proceed to the cabinet and then to President Joseph Aoun for signing.

Lebanon has not carried out an execution since January 2004, although courts have continued to impose death sentences. Rights groups estimate that over 78 individuals remain on death row. The new law will replace capital punishment with life imprisonment with hard labor, though the details of the enforcement mechanism have yet to be specified.

The move stems from years of advocacy by civil society groups and legal experts. Oragit Younan, a co-founder of the Lebanese Association for Civil Rights and a long-time campaigner against the death penalty, expressed optimism about Lebanon's stance, emphasizing that the country can serve as a model for other nations in addressing human rights concerns.

This development comes amid ongoing debate on the use of capital punishment in the Middle East, with recent examples including Jordan's resumption of executions in June and Israel's recent legislative changes allowing for expanded circumstances under which the death penalty can be imposed.