US slams France over release of George Ibrahim Abdallah

The United States on Saturday condemned France's decision to release Lebanese pro-Palestinian activist George Ibrahim Abdallah, who spent over 40 years behind bars for his role in the killings of two diplomats—one American and one Israeli.

Abdallah was arrested in 1984 and sentenced to life in prison in 1987 for involvement in the assassinations of U.S. military attaché Charles Robert Ray and Israeli diplomat Yacov Barsimantov in Paris.

Earlier this month, a French appeals court approved Abdallah's release on the condition that he leave French territory and never return to it. He was freed from a prison in southwestern France on Friday and later arrived in his hometown in Lebanon.
 
In a statement posted on social media, U.S. State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce sharply criticized the move, saying, "The United States opposes the French government's release of convicted terrorist George Ibrahim Abdallah and his deportation to Lebanon."

Bruce added that his release "endangers the safety of American diplomats abroad and is a grave injustice to the victims and their families. The United States will continue to support efforts to achieve justice in this case."