Sayyed: To Hold up Indictment until False Witnesses’ Investigations be Concluded

According to the National News Agency, General Jamil As-Sayyed's information bureau responded to Justice Minister Ibrahim Najjar's report on false witnesses' case in a statement delivered on Monday as follows:

"As per consultations and studies held by General As-Sayyed's legal advisors on Minister Najjar's report, it was deemed necessary to inform the public on a few notes:

First, the report was based on several facts, from which integral parts were omitted, especially in the following points:

1- Minister Najjar affirmed that the Lebanese Judiciary and the Lebanese Judicial Police did not listen to all false witnesses' testimonies, mainly those of Zuhair Saddik and Hussam Hussam and they were only interrogated by the International Investigation Committee. Hence, how could Najjar justify the arrest warrants Judge Mirza and Sakr issued against the four officers without interrogating them, breaching by so the Lebanese Law of Criminal Procedures as well as the understanding memorandum between the Lebanese state and the International Investigation Committee.

2- Najjar admitted that the role of Lebanese Judicial men, especially that of the General Prosecutor and investigation magistrates, was willfully dependent to the aforementioned committee, and also contradictory to the abovementioned memorandum and law. Worth-mentioning, this committee, this memorandum and this law, oblige the examining magistrate to verify evidences and witnesses' testimonies, as well as to meet personally with arrested suspects according to article 76 of the Criminal Procedure Law. However, Lebanese Judges didn't abide by any of the aforementioned procedures.

3- Mohammed Zuhair Saddik was never charged of being a false witness, but the truth is that the international committee had requested the Lebanese Judiciary to issue an arrest warrant against him after he pleaded guilty of being involved in the crime, on September 26 and 27 of 2005 when he was interrogated. Yet, he was released despite his written confession, and in September 13 of 2005, after that a "political refugee" status was ensured on his behalf, the committee had issued an arrest warrant against him.

4- Najjar also says that the examining magistrate heard Akram Shakib Mrad and didn't take any legal action against him despite the revelation of the man's fake identity then! Why doesn't Minister Najjar ask about the reason Mrad was not prosecuted? And for what reason does Najjar allege that Judge Mirza prosecuted, according to article 408, the false witness Ibrahim Jarjoura and he was imprisoned for three years, whereas the latter has been wandering in Lebanon free ever since he was released and was never legally pursued after. Can Minister Najjar tell us why he did not act against Jarjoura while he was arrested in Lebanon?

5- Najjar also said that he had cabled the STL General Prosecutor Daniel Bellemare who informed him that those who are called false witnesses are actually witnesses with "questionable credibility". Bellemare also told Najjar that article 134 of the STL's Statute does not allow pursuing false witnesses that had testified before 1/3/2009, before the international investigation period. However Najjar disregarded the fact that the STL had annulled its authorities on false witnesses, in Hariri's case, and considered them to be under the Lebanese Judiciary's authority. Why does Minister Najjar insist on awaiting the indictment to prosecute false witnesses?"

Building on the aforementioned details, General al-Sayyed reiterated his basic suggestion that the Cabinet forwards false witnesses' case to the Justice Court as per the relevant articles stipulated by the Lebanese Criminal Procedure Law.

Also, As-Sayyed demanded that Judges Said Mirza, Elias Eid, and Sakr Sakr, as well as Ashraf Rifi and Wissam Hassan, be provisionally ousted from their positions.

He demanded as well that Lebanese Judiciary solicit the STL to put off the indictment as to Rafiq Hariri's assassination, until relevant investigations are over.

Source: National News Agency