Saturday, May 16, 2015

Lebanese justice minister clarifies position on future of military court

The fallout of the lenient sentence pronounced on former minister Michel Samaha continues in Lebanon. Most recently, according to this Naharnet report:
Justice Minister Ashraf Rifi announced that he is preparing to appeal the verdict against former Minister Michel Samaha, noting that the main problem with the sentence is linked to the structure of the Military Tribunal, reported al-Joumhouria newspaper on Saturday. 
He told the daily: “I am demanding an amendment to the regulations of the Tribunal, not its elimination.” 
He revealed that his appeal will refer to video recordings of Samaha that showed him discussing the transportation of explosives from Syria to Lebanon to carry out attacks and assassinations. 
“Military officials should be tried in strictly military affairs at the Military Tribunal,” Rifi stressed. 
“We should then follow the lead of civilized countries and eliminate special courts and instead set up specialized ones,” explained Rifi.

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