Lebanese Forces party Chief Samir Geagea stressed Thursday that the case of former Information Minister Michel Samaha concerns all the Lebanese, whether they be affiliated with the March 8 camp or the March 14 coalition, noting that “the verdict issued against Samaha affects the notion of a State and threatens Lebanon’s stability.”
In a press conference held in Maarab, Geagea said that “the elements of Samaha’s crime are complete,” stressing that mitigation provisions should not be used in his case.
“Syria Assad’s was the one who gave the order to implement the operation,” he added, stating that separating the trial of Michel Samaha from that of Syrian security Chief General Ali Mamlouk was a shameful decision taken by the Military Court.
“Lebanon has the right to file a lawsuit against Assad before the United Nations Security Council,” he pressed.
In this regard, Geagea noted that Samaha’s verdict indicates that the Lebanese state has been dismantled.
“If the explosives transported by Samaha were aimed at murdering individuals, should he be released as an innocent man? If these explosives were meant to assassinate groups, is four years in prison the appropriate sentence?” he asked, stressing that it has become clear that Samaha belongs to terrorist groups.
Samaha, who had close ties with the Syrian regime, was arrested in August 2012 for plotting attacks in Lebanon along with two Syrian officials.
His trial started in June 2013 but had been repeatedly postponed for failing to summon Ali Mamlouk and a Syrian colonel identified only by his first name, Adnan, the cases of whom were included in Samaha’s trial.
Last March, the tribunal decided to separate the trial of detainee Michel Samaha from that of Syrian security Chief General Ali Mamlouk.