Lebanon becomes first Arab country to abolish death penalty as Hezbollah votes no

Lebanon's parliament has voted to abolish the death penalty, making it the first Arab nation to do so. The new law replaces death sentences with life imprisonment with hard labor. While Lebanon had a de facto moratorium on executions since 2004, the death penalty remained legal. The Justice Minister, Adel Nassar, called it "a historic step." Human rights organizations, including Human Rights Watch, welcomed the move, with researcher Ramzi Kaiss stating it marked "a definitive break with a cruel punishment." Hezbollah was the only parliamentary faction to vote against the abolition, arguing that the death penalty should not be abolished before the general amnesty bill is finalized. They expressed concern that some prisoners could benefit twice from sentence reductions, which they consider too lenient for those convicted of attacks against their members. Questions remain regarding the implementation of aggravated hard labor due to limited resources in Lebanese prisons.