Lebanon’s Parliament Meets Wednesday to Discuss General Amnesty Law

Speaker Berri met with MPs from the Democratic Gathering parliamentary bloc on Monday. (NNA)
Speaker Berri met with MPs from the Democratic Gathering parliamentary bloc on Monday. (NNA)
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Lebanon’s Parliament Meets Wednesday to Discuss General Amnesty Law

Speaker Berri met with MPs from the Democratic Gathering parliamentary bloc on Monday. (NNA)
Speaker Berri met with MPs from the Democratic Gathering parliamentary bloc on Monday. (NNA)

Lebanon’s parliament bureau will meet on Wednesday to discuss a general amnesty law in light of a spike in COVID-19 cases in the country’s jails.

The announcement was made after Speaker Nabih Berri received at his Ain al-Tineh residence a delegation of the Democratic Gathering, including MPs Hadi Abul Hosn, Bilal Abdullah and Faisal al-Sayegh.

“Discussions focused on holding a legislative session to discuss and approve a general amnesty law in light of the crisis in the country due to the impact of the coronavirus and the spread of the disease in Roumieh prison and other jails,” Abul Hosn said after the meeting.

The head of the doctors' union, Sharaf Abu Sharaf, warned that there are more than 200 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Roumieh prison, the country’s largest and most overcrowded facility.

He called on authorities to speed up trials to ease overcrowding, in a country where suspects can languish in jail for months without a hearing.

Last week, families of prisoners held a sit-in in front of the Justice Palace in Beirut, amid tight security measures, demanding general amnesty for their loved ones and expressing fear of the increasing number of infections.

Roumieh prison houses more than 4,000 prisoners, around three times its intended capacity, and has long been infamous for its poor conditions.



UK, Iraq Sign Security Pact to Target People Smuggling Gangs

Britain's Home Secretary Yvette Cooper walks near 10 Downing Street, in London, Britain, October 29, 2024. REUTERS/Hollie Adams/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
Britain's Home Secretary Yvette Cooper walks near 10 Downing Street, in London, Britain, October 29, 2024. REUTERS/Hollie Adams/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
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UK, Iraq Sign Security Pact to Target People Smuggling Gangs

Britain's Home Secretary Yvette Cooper walks near 10 Downing Street, in London, Britain, October 29, 2024. REUTERS/Hollie Adams/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
Britain's Home Secretary Yvette Cooper walks near 10 Downing Street, in London, Britain, October 29, 2024. REUTERS/Hollie Adams/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights

Britain said on Thursday it had signed a security pact with Iraq to target people smuggling gangs and strengthen border co-operation, the latest in its efforts to crack down on illegal migration.

"There are smuggler gangs profiting from dangerous small boat crossings whose operations stretch back through Northern France, Germany, across Europe, to the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and beyond," Britain's interior minister Yvette Cooper said in a statement, Reuters reported.

"Organized criminals operate across borders, so law enforcement needs to operate across borders too," she said during a visit to Iraq and the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.

Britain will also support Iraqi law enforcement to tackle other serious organised crime, including countering narcotics, the statement added.