Families of Officers Held in al-Kweikhat Case Block Sarba Road Demanding Their Release
إقرأ هذا الخبر بالعربية
The relatives of the officers detained in the case of Sheikh Ahmed Abdul Wahed and a number of army supporters on Monday blocked the Sarba-Jounieh road near an army barracks, declaring that they will not leave before the release of the generals.
The military examining magistrate issued on Saturday arrest warrants against three army officers, who were released last week, in the case of the killing of Abdul Wahed and his companion at an army checkpoint in the Akkar town of al-Kweikhat in May.
Judge Riyad Abu Ghida questioned the three officers and ordered their re-arrest, the National News Agency reported. The three officers were transferred back to the military police jail.
Their release on bail last week along with eight soldiers arrested over the case angered the residents of the district of Akkar where Sheikhs Abdul Wahed and Mohammed Merheb were killed.
Five other soldiers remain in custody.
Protestors blocked roads in Akkar and official figures, including al-Mustaqbal bloc MP Khaled al-Daher, called for referring the case to the Judicial Council.
Al-Daher even threatened civil disobedience, including sit-ins near the Grand Serail and Premier Najib Miqati’s residence, should the government keep the case in the hands of the military court.
The government sought to limit the growing unrest in the North and appease them on Monday by tasking Justice Minister Shakib Qortbawi with asking General Prosecutor Said Mirza to directly supervise the investigations and report back to the cabinet.
In an interview with LBCI on Monday, Change and Reform bloc MP Naamtallah Abi Nasr said “the step of blocking the road in Sarba was expected because we have courts that issue rulings upon demand and this is something regrettable.”
“Do you want to shatter and fragment the military institutions and turn it into militias?” Abi Nasr added.
The lawmaker called for revising the decisions confidentially, stressing that “the judiciary must not be under the mercy of the street.”
Abi Nasr noted that “the road will not be reopened before the decision is reconsidered and before the politicians stop interfering in the judiciary’s work.”
Also speaking to LBCI, Mustaqbal bloc MP Khaled al-Daher said: “We have just demands and Sheikh Ahmed is a Muslim scholar … and he was executed.”
“We’re only demanding that those who opened fire be held accountable,” Daher added.
“Let no one claim that they support the army more than us and I hail from a town that offered 12 army martyrs in the face of terrorism,” Daher said.
The lawmaker held Brig. Gen. George Nader, commander of the airborne regiment, responsible for the Sarba protest, describing it as “shameful.”
Meanwhile, a protester on the scene said: “We will remain here as long as our soldiers are detained.”
“If the judiciary only understands the language of blocking roads, we will also block roads,” said another demonstrator.
Later on Monday, however, army units and security forces managed to reopen by force one of the lanes of the Sarba highway.
Interior Minister Marwan Charbel told LBCI that “those who love the army must not block the road but must rather hire lawyers to defend the army.”
On July 9, the cabinet managed to reach a settlement over the case of Abdul Wahed and his companion.
It approved a decision by State Commissioner to the Military Court Judge Saqr Saqr to expand the investigations into the deadly incident under the supervision of State Prosecutor Saeed Mirza who will have to report to the government on the proceedings.
16 July 2012, 21:55
14
“Do you want to shatter and fragment the military institutions and turn it into militias?” Abi Nasr added.""
No, no one wants that. At the same time the army, though the one institution that the Lebanese can rally around despite its bias to HA, is not infallible. Officers can and do make mistakes. They were initially arrested for a reason and may have been released either for a reason or because of political pressure.
Let the judicial process take its course. It is only natural that suspects remain in custody until the end of the investigation as happens in all civilized countries.
That said, no one should make light of the feelings of the officers' families.
16 July 2012, 22:29
02
Supporters of the Free Patriotic Movement outside EDL's building in Mar Mikhail: “the occupation of institutions is rejected,” read some of the banners carried by the protesters.
OK girls now tell old Naamtallah how "The occupation of roads should also be rejected" and ask him why did he not block roads when Lebanese army officers were arrested for merely defending themselves against Shiite punks, or when the Shiite punk who murdered Samer Hanna was released.
17 July 2012, 03:46
30
Salafis what do you expect-- you supported the Palestinians in the past and you support the Salafis today. The Lebanese Army TAJ RASKON.
17 July 2012, 03:59
13
Rudy, why are you always so angry? mama not give enough toys to play with
17 July 2012, 06:16
32
khalad daher is your hero geha. "Sheik Ahmad is a muslim scholar that was executed" by the army?... he was travelling in armed conveys that refused to stop at a check point and fired on the soldiers. therefore he is now dead!
if a priest was driving in an armed convey that fired at and refused to stop, at an army checkpoint, the odds are he would be dead too.
17 July 2012, 10:35
02
I have no hero.
but once more: how do you explain a body riddled with 60 bullets most of them in the head, while the shiite officer had a previous running with that person a while back?
why not shoot the tires of the vehicle? do you know it was confirmed that not a single shot was fired from the bodyguards?
as well I am sure you know this guy is a political figure, not just a sheikh.
our army is not supposed to be executing the orders of the syrian regime, executing people against that regime, just because they ordered him dead.
17 July 2012, 07:57
30
Geha, I hope one day you pass an army checkpoint without stopping and they shoot you.
17 July 2012, 12:03
02
So trudemocracy... you're the dude who escaped the mental institution huh?! Time to go back home now...
17 July 2012, 10:31
02
rudes,
the main officer that ordered the fire is shiite, go check your records.
as for the rest of your comment, you seem to be an expert in such matters so do it to yourself and enjoy :)
16 July 2012, 22:59
02
should those officers be infiltrated by Hezbollah and commissioned to assassinate the sheikh, they should meet the same faith.
16 July 2012, 23:40
02
amid georges nader is orchestrating this theatre, becose this amid is the only responsible of killing the two sheiks in akkar and is hiding behind the poor small officers
17 July 2012, 05:52
02
@ Primesuspect, indeed what you are saying is very interesting, this is why i think as well the identity of those generals or officers have not been revealed. If they were chiites a war would be imminent. But surprise surprise, looks like they were christians, and affiliated to the FPM. I guess now not only the FPM and Aoun do the dirty talk, they do the dirty acts for hezbollah. My view on this whole thing is simple, there is accountability. Murder of a religious figure without even getting shot at in the first place or beeing in danger is pure fellony. EVEN if the cheikh was guilty of not stopping properly, he shouldnt have been shot that way. Even the way the murder scene was shown, is obviously that it was an act prepared in advance because the car had stopped and the aim was exellent for the killers.
17 July 2012, 10:26
40
The true colors of March 14 are beginning to show, their anti-Army hysteria will never die.
17 July 2012, 10:33
12
good tayar make good thing yesterday, he's going to support the army, but he forget that 50% of lebanese army are from akkar, and akkar need the justice to protect her sons in this army.
17 July 2012, 11:20
01
The one event since 2005 that i cant accept is the death of Samer Hanna, the officer who's helicopter was shot down, and then he was executed by HA at close range (the shia soldier in the helicopter were spared).
GMA and M8 who pretend to be 100% with the army did everything to get the culprit out of prison. And they did.
Where were the "friends of the army" then? who stood by Samer's family? GMA the great general who is one with the army? M8 christian supporters? You bet they didnt.
It has nothing to do with religion, or friends or enemies of the army. It has all to do with ACCOUNTABILITY and building a Nation.
17 July 2012, 11:51
41
How can anyone accuse 3 Lebanese army officers of being traitors! Those are Men who willingly gave and will give their lives in order to defend our homeland and our lives. and then comes a zero like Daher with an educational level approaching null, who used to work for the Syrian intelligence during the Syrio/Harriri occupation and criticize them for killing a man who refused to stop at a Barrage, the man can be a saint a sheikh or whomever when the armed force asks you to stop you comply or suffer the consequences.
What is really sad is that their educated people who criticize the army and support Daher
17 July 2012, 12:00
03
No keserweneh, what is really sad is that you claim to be educated and you dont let a judicial procedure take its course.
17 July 2012, 11:53
30
and as for the blocus It will be repeated tonight wth more and more people going into the streets to support the Lebanese Army, a semi-man like Daher will not be left unpunished. and finally as for LF and other Terrorism supporters you shall pay in 2013. No christian attacks the church and the army and wins an election in Kesrwan
17 July 2012, 12:47
03
WTF is up with all the road closing, not a day went by in the last 3 months without a major road being closed, they have already ruined the lively hood of those Lebanese that depend on tourism to feed their families, when does it stop? enough is enough, most of us are fed up with all this BS, just cause or not no one have the right to close roads period.
17 July 2012, 13:49
03
First of all I would like those defending what has happened to explain one thing, this was a convoy of 4 to 5 vehicles, if this was not deliberate then how in the hell was the one vehicle the sheikh was in targeted and not the other vehicles, just think about it for a minute, this was as deliberate as it gets.
17 July 2012, 19:33
00
Keserweneh ,where were you when Samer hanna was executed?
Neon?Ma tsharsha7 el jeish in Baalbeck, 2 weeks ago when their weapons was confiscated and were sent home without it (oups i forgot that the hizbollah s drug dealer is a saint).
You were not offended at all when the Syrian army crossed the border,kidnapped 2 soldiers and released them 4 hours later.
Hallak akhad ala khatrak ou khatro?
