Lebanese prisoners end hunger strike after amnesty bill settlement
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Over 600 prisoners in Lebanon ended a 30-day hunger strike after the country’s constitutional council ruled on a controversial amnesty bill.
The bill had been suspended when a parliamentary bloc appealed it, fearing it would free Islamist detainees accused of attacking Lebanese soldiers. The constitutional council rejected the appeal but required changes to the bill, adding restrictions on who could benefit from reduced sentences.
Prisoners began the hunger strike to protest the suspension, and approximately 72 strikers needed hospitalisation during the month-long protest. Families of the prisoners reported that at least seven hunger strikers died due to medical neglect or existing health problems. Lebanon’s prisons, such as Roumieh, are severely overcrowded, holding over 4,000 prisoners in a facility designed for 1,000. Lengthy trials and prisoners held for years without proceedings contribute to this issue.
Some prisoners, like Youssef, a Syrian detainee, have spent over a decade awaiting a verdict. Activists and politicians criticised the amnesty bill, alleging it could unintentionally pardon crimes related to Lebanon’s economic collapse and even war crimes. Although the constitutional council’s decision aimed to prevent a broad amnesty, it also limited the number of prisoners who would benefit from the law, causing mixed reactions among families.
