Key facts
- Algeria has adopted a law imposing the death penalty for arson of forests or fields.
- The new law also makes child abduction a capital offense.
Algeria's national assembly has approved a law imposing the death penalty for arsonists convicted of setting fire to forests and fields, following a series of deadly wildfires. The legislation, which also makes child abduction a capital offense, aims to curb escalating crimes that the justice minister described as reaching the level of organized crime with potential links to foreign parties.
The introduction of the death penalty for arson and child abduction signals a significant hardening of Algeria's legal stance on severe crimes, potentially impacting foreign relations if links to 'foreign parties' are substantiated and reflecting the growing global concern over climate change-induced disasters.
Algeria's national assembly has approved a new law that introduces the death penalty for individuals convicted of deliberately setting fires to forests, woods, or fields, following a series of deadly wildfires that swept through parts of the country. The legislation, which also designates child abduction as a capital offense, was passed on Thursday.
Capital punishment is already part of Algeria's penal code for certain offenses, but the country has not carried out an execution since 1993. The recent wildfires, exacerbated by an intense heatwave, resulted in an official death toll of 12, though independent news outlets report a higher number of fatalities. President Abdelmadjid Tebboune instructed the justice ministry to propose these legal amendments after more than 100 fires erupted in the country's northeast.
Justice Minister Lotfi Boudjemaa informed parliament that the death penalty for these acts is the "appropriate legal response to curb these crimes." He further justified the stricter penalties by stating that arson had escalated to "the level of organised crime," with investigations pointing to potential involvement of "foreign parties." The bill will now proceed to the upper house, the Council of the Nation, for review before final ratification by the president. Investigative journalist Nozha Khelalef has been compiling a list of fire victims based on death notices and information from local authorities.
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