On Monday afternoon, the Military Court Government Commissioner, Judge Fadi Akiki, ordered the release of political activist Makram Rabah. However, Rabah remains at the disposal of the investigators should they need to question him again.
Rabah, who is also a professor at the History Department of the American University of Beirut and is well-known for his anti-Hezbollah positions, had been summoned by the General Security Investigation Department on Saturday, although the reasons for the summons were not immediately disclosed.
Facing a complaint for allegedly making “anti-Hezbollah” remarks during an interview with the online news site Spot Shot, the activist had apparently been questioned for “suspected contacts with the enemy.” He had declined to hand over his phone to Akiki, which resulted in his “conviction” to remain available for further questioning.
Speaking to our colleague at Houna Loubnan, Judge Akiki confirmed that Rabah would be released but would remain available for further investigations if needed, specifying that “charges for contacts with the enemy have not been filed against him. We are pursuing the investigation, and a decision will be made based on the findings,” the magistrate stated.
In a statement to the pan-Arab channel al-Hadath upon leaving the premises of General Security, Rabah defended his “constitutional right to express himself freely,” adding, “Had I been a Captagon trafficker like Hezbollah, the judge wouldn’t have dared to summon me. The collaborator is the one who allows Lokman Slim’s murderers to roam free.”
Makram Rabah was close to Lokman Slim, another anti-Hezbollah activist who was killed on February 4, 2021. He was shot dead, and his body was found in his car in the region of Nabatieh.
As per report from Houna Loubnan, investigators did not inquire about Rabah’s alleged contacts with Israel. Instead, they focused on the purported information he might have shared concerning Hezbollah and its weapons. In response, the activist cited media sources that had reported such information, all of which have close ties to Hezbollah.
He was also questioned about his frequent verbal attacks against the pro-Iranian group. According to the same information source, investigators reportedly cautioned him that he was “jeopardizing national security at a time when Lebanon is at war.”
The complaint lodged against Makram Rabah revolves around comments he made during a televised interview, or so his colleagues believe.
In the interview, Rabah echoed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah’s statements regarding the potential reopening of the southern front, suggesting that “from an international law standpoint, Israeli retaliation would be justified.” He also weighed in on reports about Tel Aviv’s alleged desire to control Lebanon’s water resources, remarking, “If only Israel could seize the Litani. It would be better to prevent this river from becoming an open-air sewer.”
Outside the General Security headquarters, where Rabah was being questioned, several activists staged a sit-in in solidarity with their colleague.
This clearly politically motivated summon stirred up outraged reactions. “Release Makram Rabah immediately,” requested Samy Gemayel, leader of the Kataeb party. “Just as we’ve done before, we won’t tolerate another series of baseless accusations and limitations on freedom of expression today,” he wrote on the X platform.
As for MP Nadim Gemayel, he addressed a message to Hezbollah, stating on his X account, “Demonizing all those who disagree with you is no longer acceptable. Defending Lebanon and its sovereignty violated by Hezbollah is not the same as collaborating with the enemy. This is the highest degree of patriotism,” he wrote, emphasizing that “attempts at oppression and intimidation will not silence free voices.”
The Lebanese Forces strongly condemned Mr. Rabah’s summons, which they considered “an attack on freedom of opinion and expression”.
The press office of the Lebanese Forces also considered it “a threat to the nature and role of Lebanon” and that it “therefore cannot be tolerated”. “Some official services became a tool in the hands of Hezbollah. He uses them to punish anyone who opposes its control of Lebanon and the war it is waging on its territory,” the LF added. The party accused the pro-Iranian group of “reproducing the the Syrian occupation’s scheme when the Lebanese state assumed the implementation of the Syrian agenda.”
The Lebanese Forces called on “the Prime Minister, the Minister of Justice and the President of the Supreme Council of the Judiciary to take the necessary and quick measures to liberate the post of government commissioner to the military court from Hezbollah’s control”.
