August 11, 2026
The development marks a major change in Lebanon’s criminal justice system, although the country had effectively maintained a moratorium on executions for more than two decades.
Lebanon’s parliament has voted to abolish the death penalty, formally ending capital punishment in the country and making it the first nation in the Middle East to take such a legislative step.
The decision was announced on Tuesday by the office of Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri after lawmakers approved a bill seeking to remove the death penalty from Lebanon’s legal system following amendments to the proposed legislation.
“The draft law aimed at abolishing the death penalty in Lebanon was approved after amendments were made to it,” the speaker’s office said, according to France 24.
