By Sunday Ameh
Lebanon has officially abolished the death penalty, becoming the first Arab country to formally end capital punishment.
The Lebanese Parliament approved the landmark legislation on Tuesday, August 11, 2026, replacing existing death sentences with life imprisonment.
The development marks a major change to Lebanon’s criminal justice system, where the death penalty had remained legal despite a de facto moratorium on executions since 2004.
Under the new law, individuals already sentenced to death will have their sentences converted to life imprisonment.
The move has been welcomed by international human rights organisations, with Amnesty International describing the abolition as a significant human rights victory. The European Union also praised Lebanon’s decision as an important example for the region.
Lebanon’s decision makes it the first country in the Arab world to completely abolish capital punishment. Other countries in the wider Middle East, including Turkey, had already abolished the death penalty, but Turkey is not an Arab country.
The abolition follows years of debate over capital punishment in Lebanon. Earlier in 2026, lawmakers had advanced legislation seeking to remove the death penalty from the country’s legal framework.
The landmark vote is expected to renew debate across the Arab world over the continued use of capital punishment and the possibility of replacing it with alternative criminal sanctions.
Lebanon’s parliament has now formally closed the chapter on capital punishment, making the country the first Arab state to do so.
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