Algeria's lower house of parliament has adopted a law allowing the death penalty for people convicted of deliberately setting fire to forests or fields, following a summer of deadly wildfires. Lawmakers voted on Thursday for the bill, which also extends capital punishment to child kidnappings involving torture, sexual assault or mutilation. The law must still be reviewed by the upper house, the Council of the Nation, before President Abdelmadjid Tebboune ratifies it.

The measure follows more than 100 fires in the country's north-east during an intense heatwave. The official death toll is 12, but the independent news website Twala puts it at around 200. Investigative journalist Nozha Khelalef compiled that tally from death notices posted by families and information shared by some local authorities. Witnesses have also reported dozens of deaths.

Tebboune ordered the justice ministry in August to widen the list of crimes punishable by death. Justice Minister Lotfi Boudjemaa told parliament that the death penalty was "the appropriate legal response to curb these crimes". He argued that arson had reached "the level of organised crime", with investigations pointing to "foreign parties", though he did not say which. He went further, describing fires set at the instigation of foreign actors as "a clear form of treason". Tebboune himself has alleged "something criminal" behind the latest blazes. Boudjemaa said defendants would retain safeguards, including appeals and the possibility of a presidential pardon.

Capital punishment remains in Algeria's penal code, and courts have continued to hand down death sentences, mainly in terrorism-related cases. However, the country, Africa's largest by area, has observed a moratorium on executions since 1993. Tebboune has said that those sentenced to death would be executed once their appeals were exhausted.

Amnesty International urged Algeria last month not to adopt the law or resume executions, calling it "a deeply retrograde response". The rights group said authorities should instead "focus on protecting lives, strengthening prevention and emergency response" as wildfires recur.

Why this matters: wildfires are a regular summer feature in northern Algeria, and climate change, through more frequent droughts and extreme heat, is intensifying their impact. The new law shows the government framing the fires primarily as a security and criminal issue. It also raises the question of whether a 30-year pause on executions will end, a step rights groups strongly oppose.