Seven suspects identified in Hezbollah explosives case
Judicial authorities are nearing the completion of the preliminary investigation into the Hezbollah explosives case, paving the way to file charges against seven suspects involved in the case, a media report said.
“Government Commissioner to the Military Court, Judge Claude Ghanem, is expected to receive within a few hours the records of the preliminary investigations conducted by the Intelligence Directorate of the Lebanese Army and the Information Branch of the Internal Security Forces, to review them and press charges against those involved in accordance with the crimes that match their actions,” Asharq al-Awsat newspaper reported.
“While reports circulated regarding the arrest of a new individual in addition to the two who were inside the truck transporting the explosives, the judicial source clarified that the arrests remain limited to two people,” the daily added.
However, the source confirmed to Asharq al-Awsat that the investigation has "revealed the identities of five other individuals suspected of links to the case, among them a person called Sajid, who is a security figure belonging to Hezbollah and suspected of delivering the explosives in Baalbek, and another called Zulfiqar, who also holds a security position and was supposed to receive the explosives in the southern suburbs of Beirut, in addition to the wife of H. A. (one of the detainees) and the owner of the truck carrying the explosives."
Until the government makes its decision on whether or not to refer the file to the Judicial Council, the judicial process for this file is expected to continue before the Military Court.
The judicial source announced that Judge Claude Ghanem "will begin reviewing the records and matching the confessions and evidence with the applicable legal texts governing the acts attributed to the suspects, in preparation for determining the criminal charges on which he will base the prosecution of both the detainees and those at large."
He anticipated that "charges will be filed on Thursday against the individuals whose responsibilities have been established in this case." He further stressed that the preliminary investigation "succeeded in uncovering the real names of those involved in the case, and bench warrants as well as search and arrest warrants have been issued for some of them and are currently being executed."
Meanwhile, Minister of Justice Adel Nassar reiterated to the daily his insistence on referring the file to the Judicial Council, stating that "the gravity of the file goes beyond transporting and storing explosives to posing a threat to national security and civil peace."
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