Algeria’s national assembly voted Thursday to introduce the death penalty for individuals convicted of arson of forests, woods or fields, a law that also makes child abduction a capital offence. The change follows a series of wildfires that swept the northeast of the country during a record heatwave, killing at least 12 people officially, though independent estimates suggest the death toll could be as high as 200.
President Abdelmadjid Tebboune ordered the justice ministry to draft the amendments after more than 100 fires erupted during the heatwave. Justice Minister Lotfi Boudjemaa told parliament that the death penalty is the "appropriate legal response to curb these crimes" and that arson had reached the level of organised crime with possible links to foreign parties.
The bill will be reviewed by the Council of the Nation before the president formally ratifies it. No executions have taken place in Algeria since 1993, despite the death penalty being part of the penal code for other offences.
Investigative journalist Nozha Khelalef has compiled a list of those believed to have died in the blazes, posting death notices on the independent website Twala. Her tally puts the death toll at 200, far above the official figure.
While forest fires are a regular summer occurrence in Algeria, climate change has intensified the frequency and severity of recent wildfires, prompting the government to adopt harsher penalties.
