Lokman Slim's family accuses judge of halting probe

The widow of slain Lebanese intellectual Lokman Slim, a critic of Hezbollah, has denounced a judge investigating his murder four years ago for allegedly closing the probe.

A secular activist from a Shiite Muslim family, 58-year-old Slim was found shot dead in his car on February 4, 2021, a day after his family reported him missing.

His family has said Hezbollah had threatened Slim several times, most notably in December 2019.

"It's already the fourth commemoration and justice has not been done -- on the contrary," his German widow Monika Borgmann said during a ceremony to remember him.

She accused the investigating judge handling the case after his predecessor had retired of being "very close to Hezbollah."

"We filed two requests to remove him from the case," Borgmann said, adding: "As soon as he knew about these requests he issued his order to suspend the investigation indefinitely."

A judicial official told AFP that the investigating judge had tried to do everything he could in the case, but concluded the investigation without identifying his killers.

The case could still be reopened if new information arises, he said, requesting anonymity to discuss a sensitive matter.

Lebanon is gripped by political and economic dysfunction to the point that even investigations into the devastating 2020 Beirut port explosion which killed more than 200 people and ravaged entire neighborhoods have yet to identify a single suspect.