Lebanon, as the first country in the Middle East, has abolished the death penalty

🔸The Lebanese parliament on Tuesday voted to abolish the death penalty, making the country the first in the Middle East to officially end this punishment.

🔸Lebanon had not carried out any executions since 2004, but death sentences continued to be issued, with the latest case being issued on Monday, 19 Mordad. Amnesty International says that by January, at least 85 people in Lebanon were on death row.

🔸The death penalty in Lebanon was mainly considered for crimes such as murder, terrorism, and espionage. Under the new law, the most serious crimes will be punished with life imprisonment along with aggravated hard labor.

🔸Adel Nassar, Lebanon’s justice minister, called the decision “historic” and said that the existence of the death penalty in the past prevented some countries that have abolished it from extraditing suspects to Lebanon.

🔸France also described the decision as “historic and courageous,” and the European Union said Lebanon, with this move, has created a “powerful example” for other Middle Eastern countries and beyond.

🔸The abolition of the death penalty came after years of campaigning by activists and human rights organizations. Human Rights Watch called it a “major step for human rights” in Lebanon, and Amnesty International also urged the conversion of all existing death sentences into other punishments and for Lebanon to join the relevant international treaty on abolition of the death penalty.

🔸Read the full report on Radio Farda’s website.