Lebanon parliament votes to abolish death penalty

As co-founder of the Lebanese Association for Civil Rights, she led a nearly three-decade campaign to abolish the death penalty in Lebanon."We are in a war, and people [have been] killed every day, so even in this situation, we can fight, we can struggle for human rights, and we can win. We can be a model for others," she said.Tuesday's vote in parliament follows more than two decades of a de facto moratorium on executions. An execution required a decree signed by the president, prime minister and justice minister - but no such decree has been signed since 2004.Under Lebanese law, the death penalty could previously be imposed for some of the country's most serious offences, including aggravated murder, certain terrorism-related crimes resulting in death, treason, espionage and offences against state security.Previous attempts to abolish the death penalty have failed, including legislation introduced in parliament in 2004 and a proposal from the justice ministry in 2008.Lebanon's move comes as the use of the death penalty remains contested elsewhere in the Middle East.Jordan resumed executions in June, carrying out its first since 2017.In Israel, its parliament has approved legislation that allows for the expansion of the circumstances in which capital punishment can be imposed.