Lebanonupdated 25m ago3 min read
Lebanon Issues Arrest Warrants for Ali Al-Kurdi and Haitham Amhaz in Hezbollah Explosives Case
“ensure a ‘swift, independent judicial process free from any political interference’”
“the group rejected the legal action, describing the indictments as inherently unfair.”
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Arrest warrants issued for Ali al-Kurdi and Haitham Amhaz in Hezbollah explosives case. The detainees were questioned by Judge Ghada Abu Alwan with detention ordered.
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Charges in explosives case
Lebanon’s military judge Ghada Abu Alwan issued arrest warrants for Ali al-Kurdi and Haitham Amhaz after questioning them in the presence of their lawyer, Maan al-Asaad, in a case tied to a truckload of explosives seized at a checkpoint in eastern Lebanon.
“Where did the explosives come from, where were they headed and who was responsible for transporting them?”
Lebanon’s state-run news agency reported that Abu Alwan issued formal charges for Kurdi and Amhaz, who were already held in custody, and postponed a hearing for six other suspects until Nov. 17 after their lawyer filed procedural objections.
Internal Security Forces seized the explosives-laden vehicle on the Dahr el-Baidar road linking Beirut to Damascus on Oct. 5, and the truck carried nearly 800 kilograms of explosives, including TNT and C4.
The case shifted from preliminary investigations to formal judicial proceedings as Abu Alwan’s questioning focused on “Where did the explosives come from, where were they headed and who was responsible for transporting them?”
Judge Claude Ghanem, the government commissioner to the military court, brought charges against Kurdi and Amhaz and 11 other Hezbollah members who remain at large, with offenses including undermining internal state security and forming “illegal associations” aimed at undermining the state’s authority and prestige.
Hezbollah rejects, embassies urge
Hezbollah rejected the legal action in the explosives case, describing the indictments as inherently unfair and characterizing the court’s decision as being subject to external political dictates. A Hezbollah delegation visited the Justice Palace in Beirut to press the case with State Prosecutor Judge Ahmad Rami al-Hajj, and the delegation told him that the explosives belong to the party for resistance against Israel. The delegation’s position said that “any conviction would be tantamount to cutting off the hand of the resistance at a time when Israeli bulldozing operations and attacks are ongoing,” according to MTV as cited by Naharnet.
Five embassies, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and Japan, called on Lebanese authorities to ensure a “swift, independent judicial process free from any political interference” in the Dahr al-Baidar case. Amal Movement MP Kassem Hashem described the embassies’ statement as “a precedent in terms of interference in national affairs,” and he said the communiqué violated the Vienna Convention and diplomatic norms.
UNIFIL withdrawal and state authority
UNIFIL confirmed on Thursday that it would begin its gradual withdrawal from south Lebanon at the end of the year, and it said peacekeepers from 45 countries would continue daily operations across southern Lebanon until then. The UN Security Council was examining options for the post-UNIFIL period, and the mission’s mandate had been extended until the end of this year with a year-long drawdown and withdrawal after that, according to Al-Monitor. Lebanon’s judicial moves came as the Lebanese government expanded restrictions on Hezbollah, declaring the group’s military and security activities illegal and urging the Lebanese military to move forward on plans to bring all weapons under state control.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio urged President Joseph Aoun to “hold accountable all those who ordered, financed and directed the shipment” and stressed that “returning explosives to Hezbollah should be out of the question,” according to Al-Monitor. Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said authorities must identify those involved and those behind them, determine their plans, and refer them to the judiciary as the explosives case continued to test the balance between state authority and Hezbollah’s declared weapons arsenal.