Syrian Minister visits Beirut for justice talks, prisoner agreements in focus

Report by Nada Andraos, English adaptation by Mariella Succar

Syria’s Justice Minister visited Beirut on a second official visit to Lebanon, following an earlier trip by the Syrian foreign minister, this time focusing on legal and judicial matters.

Hosted by Lebanon’s Deputy Prime Minister Tarek Metri, the Syrian minister met with his Lebanese counterpart, Adel Nassar. The two delegations spent nearly three hours working on a draft judicial cooperation agreement between the two countries.

For Syria, the agreement prioritizes the status of Syrian detainees and convicts held in Lebanese prisons. Lebanon, in turn, aims to establish frameworks for judicial cooperation covering detainees, prisoners, and missing persons in Syria, as well as identifying planners of political assassinations committed in Lebanon and facilitating the extradition of fugitives who fled to Syria.

During the meeting, the Syrian delegation reiterated its demand for the release of all Syrian detainees in Lebanese prisons, many of whom were reportedly arrested for supporting the Syrian revolution.

The Lebanese side insisted on following existing legal frameworks, leading to a preliminary agreement: Lebanon will release detainees held on charges related to their affiliation with the Syrian revolution and expedite trials for others, excluding those facing charges of murder, rape, or fighting against the Lebanese army.

Work on the agreement is expected to continue in a subsequent meeting in Damascus in the coming weeks.

The Syrian delegation also requested to meet with several Syrian detainees and prisoners at Roumieh Prison. 

Among those met were eight Syrians, including a revolutionary convicted of joining Jabhat al-Nusra and fighting against the Lebanese army, and Mhammad Qasim, convicted of terrorist acts and vehicle bombings in the southern suburbs of Beirut, as well as others sentenced by the military tribunal to life hard labor for leading or being members of terrorist groups and assaults on the Lebanese army.