The approval by the joint parliamentary committees of the proposed general amnesty law in its current form sparked a wave of protests and road blockages across several Lebanese regions, amid objections from the families of Islamist detainees, who considered the law in its current version unfair and unjust. Meanwhile, the security forces and the army confirmed that they are working to reopen the roads and contain the protests.

Several areas, including Tripoli, Akkar, Sidon, and Khaldeh, witnessed protest movements involving road closures using burning tires, cars, and barricades. The most notable closures took place at the Al Mhamara bridge in Akkar, the Al Palma highway in Tripoli, the international road between Miniyeh and Abdah, in addition to a sit in by supporters of Sheikh Ahmad Al Assir at the Awali bridge in Sidon.

Anger in the streets after the approval of the general amnesty law

Street Protests

Deputy Speaker of Parliament Elias Bou Saab announced after the joint committees meeting that the approved version "preserved the rights of the families of army martyrs not to waive their personal rights before the civil courts," noting that the army "was not a party in the conflicts." He also emphasized that the proposal considered the comments of the Ministries of Defense and Interior and the army leadership.

Bou Saab clarified that the discussions also addressed death penalty sentences, where a ceiling of 28 years imprisonment was adopted, equivalent to about 21 and a half actual years, pointing out that the dispute over "integration" was returned to its "legal status."

Amid the protests, Bou Saab confirmed that Speaker of the Parliament Nabih Berri requested the legislative session’s agenda be completed on Thursday, including the general amnesty law, stressing that there is insistence on approving it before Eid al-Adha after reaching a "version acceptable to the parliamentary majority."