Military Court Judge Peter Germanos on Saturday issued a groundbreaking ruling in a case in which four military personnel were referred to the tribunal to face homosexuality charges.

Germanos ruled that homosexuality is not a crime, arguing that "sodomy is not punishable by law".

This is the first time that Lebanon's Military Court issues such a verdict, while civilian tribunals have already made similar rulings.

The magistrate told The Daily Star newspaper that Article 534 of the Lebanese Penal Code does not clearly states what kind of relationship can be considered “contrary to nature” and does not distinguish between male and female.

Article 534, put in place in the early 1900s, punishes “any sexual intercourse contrary to the order of nature” with up to one year in prison.