Lebanon Abolishes Death Penalty After Nearly Two Decades of Moratorium on Its Implementation

The Lebanese parliament approved on Tuesday the abolition of the death penalty, whose implementation had been suspended in the country for more than two decades, making Lebanon the first country in the Middle East to officially end this punishment.

The parliament began a two-day legislative session on Tuesday, with several items on its agenda, including a general amnesty bill that has sparked controversy and division for years.

Following the opening of the session, the parliament approved “the bill aimed at abolishing the death penalty in Lebanon,” according to the presidency of the parliament.

It was clarified that, once the law is published, “countries that have abolished the death penalty will no longer be able to refuse the extradition of fugitives from justice from Lebanon abroad,” now that the obstacle posed by the inclusion of this penalty in Lebanese law has been removed.

Lebanon had unofficially suspended the death penalty, which was last carried out in 2004.

In 2024, Lebanon voted in favor of a resolution at the United Nations General Assembly calling on all countries to impose a voluntary moratorium on executions, as a step toward abolishing the penalty.

Ramzi Qais, a Lebanon researcher at Human Rights Watch, told Agence France-Presse after the parliament’s vote that “Lebanon’s abolition of the death penalty represents a historic and pivotal step in the field of human rights in the country, and marks a clear break with a cruel and arbitrary punishment that should never be imposed.”