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Lebanese Minister Accuses President of "Gross Negligence" in Al- Hariri Probe

Posted on: Saturday, 3 September 2005, 06:00 CDT

Excerpt from report by Lebanese National News Agency website

Beirut, 2 September: Information Minister Ghazi al-Aridi has stated that "the president's defence of Brig-Gen Mustafa Hamdan, the Presidential Guard commander, and his statement yesterday following the news conference by international investigator Detlev Mehlis, was an attempt to influence the investigation into the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafiq al-Hariri". Al-Aridi pointed out that "those detained in connection with the terrorist operation belong to a working team that shouldered certain responsibilities at a certain stage during which the crime was perpetrated and this is not a sectarian issue".

Al-Aridi asked: "How do you want the Lebanese people to regard the president of the republic when all the senior members of his staff are in jail facing charges supported by evidence that they plotted the assassination? Can anyone be reassured? Can anyone consider the president impartial after he has implicated himself by such interference in the investigation, now that he has voiced such stands and given that this group and the members of the team who worked directly under him are in jail?"

Al-Aridi urged "waiting for the results of the investigation and leaving the investigating committee to present the results and publish the conclusions".

Al-Aridi's remarks came in an interview with the Dubai Television. The following are highlights of the interview:

[Question] Yesterday, Judge Mirza pressed charges against those arrested. Have you any fears that the issue will be politicized?

[Al-Aridi] What caused fear was the president of the republic. Over the past two days he has issued a statement defending Presidential Guard Commander Brig-Gen Mustafa Hamdan. This came following yesterday's news conference by international investigator Detlev Mehlis. The president's statement was a sort of an attempt to influence the investigation. Obviously, they did not want the Court of Appeal prosecutor to make a decision to arrest the suspects although the international investigator said that he had evidence proving their involvement in plotting the crime, and therefore it was not merely a suspicion. So they were charged and arrested. This created grave concern among the Lebanese political circles, especially when the "president of the Lebanese republic", quote- unquote, is saying this. This created political displeasure and questions were raised in many circles, given that the president always said that he wanted an investigation and an international commission, and he wanted the truth. If we want to reveal the truth, then let us leave this to those who are looking for it, that is the international investigation commission.

[Question] You place yesterday's statement by the president within the framework of the pressure on the judiciary?

[Al-Aridi] Of course. Some were surprised by president's defence of Mustafa Hamdan over all the others in this team. I am personally surprised as well. He is the president of the republic but look how he behaves and how he deals with major issues in the country. In the past, the president considered the assassination of Rafiq al-Hariri a despicable act. He later said the comments on summoning officials during the first stage of the investigation were a kind of disturbance to the investigation commission. If the president considers the crime a despicable act, he should not take any steps in this direction. Therefore, the least he could do was to consider the stands that were expressed on the arrests a disturbance of the investigation. However, the president said what he said and he defended Mustafa Hamdan. From the president he turned into a man responsible for a certain team, exactly like one of the members of this group, and praised Mustafa Hamdan because he saved his life.

It seems that this is the basic thing as far as he is concerned. As for drowning Lebanon into trouble, threatening the lives of many Lebanese and holding in contempt an investigation into the assassination of Rafiq al-Hariri and Basil Fulayhan, it is a secondary issue in the country. How can we explain this? Had the president behaved as an employee in the archives department, he would have given detailed information on the life of Mustafa Hamdan. But perhaps the president had other motives that prevented him from giving this detailed information because if he reveals what the two men knew and what the one knows about the other, a great trouble would be created. The investigation commission should be given much information and this would obviate further investigations in this direction and also render unnecessary the information that the Lebanese and non-Lebanese would present.

This is a kind of gross negligence in dealing with such a big issue. They ask: Why is everyone looking at us and why are we being placed under suspicion, doubt, condemnation?

[Question] Yesterday, international investigator Mehlis said that the president was not implicated. Do you still demand his resignation?

[Al-Aridi] How do you want the Lebanese to regard the president when all the members of his staff are in jail, charged, based on evidence, with plotting the assassination? What do you want the Lebanese to say and how can they regard the president of the republic in such a case? Do you expect demonstrations wishing the president a long life and demanding that he remain president for life? What for? What were his great achievements? Just a few hours ago, we talked about the infamous decision to extend the presidential term. Look at the results and repercussions of this. What will observers expect? What do we expect the Lebanese people to say? [Passage omitted]

[Question] Are you apprehensive that a political issue in Lebanon might emerge with sectarian dimensions because the investigation judge might press charges or fail to do so?

[Al-Aridi] I do not think that any sane person in Lebanon will consider such a thing if evidence is eventually provided at the end of the investigation. Those who were detained belong to a working team and they do not belong to a certain community. Each belongs to a different community. Therefore, their arrest, the suspicions around them, and the convictions, if eventually there are any, will not be because they belong to this or that community. They belong to a working team with certain responsibilities at a certain phase during which the terrorist attack that killed Former Prime Minister Al-Hariri and MP Basil Fulayhan was perpetrated. Therefore, the issue is not a sectarian one and I do not believe that anyone can cover up such a result if it is proven.

Source: BBC Monitoring Middle East

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