The military court issued on Thursday its verdict in the case of cargo ship “Lutfallah II,” sentencing in absentia two Syrian nationals to life imprisonment, and one Lebanese national to 6 months in prison with a LBP 500, 000 fine.
The verdict, however did not reveal the final destination of the cargo nor the identity of the intended recipients.
In April 2012, the Lebanese Navy intercepted a Sierra Leone-flagged cargo ship named “Lutfallah II”, due to suspicions that it was carrying 3 containers of weapons bound for Syria. The ship was brought to Selaata port, around 50 km north of Beirut, where its cargo was inspected revealing weapons aboard.
The eleven-member crew – eight Syrians, two Egyptians and an Indian – along with the ship’s agent were arrested.
Sources said that the arms, some of which were labeled as Libyan, were destined for the rebels in Syria.
The ship is reported to have begun its voyage from Libya, stopping briefly in Egypt's Alexandria, and then heading for the port of Tripoli in northern Lebanon before it was intercepted.