Penal Code.

The Libyan Penal Code, comprising 507 articles, outlines the foundational principles of criminal law, types of penalties, metrics for criminal responsibility, and specific offenses against the state and public interest, including provisions influenced by Sharia law. The Code (i) distinguishes between principal penalties (death, imprisonment, detention, and fines) and accessory penalties, such as loss of civil rights, professional bans, legal incapacity, and public disclosure of sentences; (ii) defines reduced responsibility for minors and mentally impaired individuals, distinguishes offenders from accomplices, and imposes harsher penalties for repeat offenders.
The Code criminalizes the contamination and endangerment of resources essential to human survival, with a particular emphasis on protecting public health from the effects of pollution and biological threats. Article 306, which addresses the poisoning of water or food supplies, imposes a minimum sentence of five years’ imprisonment on anyone who poisons or contaminates water sources or foodstuffs before they reach consumers. The penalties are significantly aggravated where the contamination results in fatalities: life imprisonment applies if one person dies, while the death penalty may be imposed in cases involving multiple deaths. In addition, the Penal Code provides broader protection against damage to public utilities and essential infrastructure, criminalizing acts that deliberately destroy or impair public or private resources, including irrigation systems, public water wells, and agricultural facilities, to safeguard their integrity and prevent sabotage. Public health is further protected under Article 305 on epidemic diseases, which criminalizes the intentional spread of pathogenic microorganisms that result in the occurrence of an epidemic. Article 307 extends this protection by penalizing the adulteration, pollution, or counterfeiting of water and food intended for public consumption prior to their distribution or sale, where such conduct creates a danger to public health. Similarly, Article 309 criminalizes the possession, sale, distribution, or supply of food products and drugs that are hazardous to public health, even when they are not counterfeit or adulterated.
Concerning animal protection, Article 502 prohibits acts of cruelty to animals and penalizes anyone who mistreats, overloads, or manifestly overworks an animal without justification. Article 362 further criminalizes the propagation of diseases among plants or animals when such conduct endangers the economy or national livestock wealth. In addition, Article 460 protects private property by punishing anyone who intentionally kills, injures, or renders unfit for use an animal belonging to another without lawful justification. Article 489 addresses negligence in the custody and care of animals and vehicles, imposing penalties on anyone who keeps dangerous animals without proper supervision, leaves them at large, or entrusts them to an inexperienced person. The same provision extends liability to conduct that endangers public safety, including leaving draft, burden, or racing animals unattended or uncontrolled in public spaces, provoking animals in a way that risks harm to persons, and operating or leaving vehicles in public areas without the necessary precautions, even for a short period.