France welcomes Lebanon’s abolition of the death penalty, calling it a historic decision

Paris, Aug 12 (KUNA) -- France welcomed on Wednesday the Lebanese parliament’s approval of a law abolishing the death penalty. In a statement, the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that Lebanon thereby became the first country in the Middle East to take this step. The ministry added that France welcomed the historic vote by the Lebanese parliament, which reaffirmed the commitment Lebanon had announced at the Ninth World Congress Against the Death Penalty, hosted by the French capital from June 30 to July 2 of this year. It noted that, in light of the sharp increase in executions worldwide, France calls on all countries that still retain the death penalty to abolish it. Yesterday, Tuesday, the Lebanese Chamber of Deputies voted to abolish the death penalty and replace it with life imprisonment with hard labor, in an unprecedented legislative move that made Lebanon the first country in the Middle East to eliminate this punishment. (End) M.B./R.J.