Syria Issues 33 Arrest Warrants-Controversy
Syria has recently issued more than 33 arrest warrants of highly prominent figures that include senior Lebanese judges, officers, politicians, journalists and even international officials, most of which are part of the Hariri political clan.
Former head of the UN International Independent Investigation Commission (UNIIIC) also known as Special Tribunal for Lebanon(STL)Detlev Mehlis, his assistant Gerhard Lehmann, Attorney General Judge Said Mirza, Judge Saqr Saqr, Internal Security Forces (ISF) Director General Achraf Rifi, Attorney General Judge Said Mirza, MP Marwan Hamadeh, TV anchor Fares Khashan, Information Branch Chief Wissam el Hassan, former Minister of Interior Hassan el Sabeh, former Justice Minister Charles Rizk, Lebanese Ambassador Johnny Abdo and former Syrian Vice President Abdul Halim Khaddam are among those named by the warrants!
The attorney behind this is Fasih al-Ashi, who currently represents Jamil al-Sayyed. The latter is an ex-Lebanese army general, one of four pro-Syrian officers freed last year for lack of evidence after they had been jailed without charge for nearly four years in connection with the 2005 slaying of Rafik Hariri.
The mentioned names allegedly mislead the investigation of the assassination of Lebanon’s former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, and refused to cooperate with the Syrian’s requests for interrogation (of more than a year). The list will also be sent to the International Interpol, apparently.
To note that this comes only one week before the expected visit of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to Beirut (Oct. 13), and weeks from the possible indictment of Hizbullah by the Netherlands-based court looking into the Hariri slaying affair (that the whole world is interfering in).
To be continued…