عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Arab World

French Court Orders Release of Lebanese Activist Georges Abdallah

Lebanese activist Abdallah had been sentenced to life in prison - AFP
Lebanese activist Abdallah had been sentenced to life in prison - AFP
TT
TT

French Court Orders Release of Lebanese Activist Georges Abdallah

Lebanese activist Abdallah had been sentenced to life in prison - AFP
Lebanese activist Abdallah had been sentenced to life in prison - AFP

A French court on Friday ordered the release of pro-Palestinian Lebanese activist Georges Ibrahim Abdallah, jailed for 40 years for the killing of two foreign diplomats, prosecutors said.

The court said Abdallah, first detained in 1984 and convicted in 1987 over the 1982 murders, would be released on December 6 provided he leaves France, French anti-terror prosecutors said in a statement to AFP, adding that they would appeal.

"In (a) decision dated today, the court granted Georges Ibrahim Abdallah conditional release from December 6, subject to the condition that he leaves French territory and not appear there again," the prosecutors said.

Washington has consistently opposed his release but Lebanese authorities have repeatedly said he should be freed from jail.

Abdallah, now 73, has always insisted he is a "fighter" who battled for the rights of Palestinians and not a "criminal". This was his 11th bid for release.

He had been eligible to apply for parole since 1999 but all his previous applications had been turned down, except in 2013 when he was granted release on the condition he was expelled from France.

However the then interior minister Manuel Valls refused to go through with the order and Abdallah remained in jail.

The court's decision on Friday is not conditional on the government issuing such an order, Abdallah's lawyer, Jean-Louis Chalanset, told AFP, hailing "a legal and a political victory".

 

One of France's longest serving inmates, Abdallah has never expressed regret for his actions.

At his trial over the killing of the diplomats, Abdallah was sentenced to life in prison, a much more severe punishment than the 10 years demanded by prosecutors.

His lawyer Jacques Verges, who defended clients including Venezuelan militant Carlos the Jackal, described the verdict as a "declaration of war".

There remains a broad swell of support for his cause among the far left and communists in France. Last month, 2022 Nobel literature prize winner Annie Ernaux, said in a piece in communist daily L'Humanite that his detention "shamed France".

Most Viewed

 
 
Arab World

UN Humanitarian Chief Urges Massive Aid Boost for Syria

UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher (R) said he received "the strongest possible reassurances" from Syria's interim prime minister Mohammad al-Bashir that aid workers would have the necessary access on the ground. SANA/AFP
UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher (R) said he received "the strongest possible reassurances" from Syria's interim prime minister Mohammad al-Bashir that aid workers would have the necessary access on the ground. SANA/AFP
TT
TT

UN Humanitarian Chief Urges Massive Aid Boost for Syria

UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher (R) said he received "the strongest possible reassurances" from Syria's interim prime minister Mohammad al-Bashir that aid workers would have the necessary access on the ground. SANA/AFP
UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher (R) said he received "the strongest possible reassurances" from Syria's interim prime minister Mohammad al-Bashir that aid workers would have the necessary access on the ground. SANA/AFP

Visiting UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher called Wednesday for a massive aid boost for Syria to respond to "this moment of hope" after the ouster of longtime strongman Bashar al-Assad.
"Across the country, the needs are huge. Seven in 10 people are needing support right now," Fletcher told AFP in a telephone interview as he visited Syria.
"I want to scale up massively international support, but that now depends on donors. The Syria fund has been historically, shamefully underfunded and now there is this opportunity," he said.
"The Syrian people are trying to come home when it's safe to do so, to rebuild their country, to rebuild their communities and their lives.
"We have to get behind them and to respond to this moment of hope. And if we don't do that quickly, then I fear that this window will close."
Half of Syria's population were forced from their homes during nearly 14 years of civil war, with millions finding refuge abroad.
UN officials have said a $4 billion appeal for Syria aid is less than a third funded.
"There are massive humanitarian needs... water, food, shelter... There are needs in terms of government services, health, education, and then there are longer term rebuilding needs, development needs," Fletcher said.
"We've got to be ambitious in our ask of donors.
"The Syrian people demand that we deliver, and they're right to demand that we deliver," he said. "The world hasn't delivered for the Syrian people for more than a decade."
'Test for all'
As part of his visit, Fletcher met representatives of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the opposition group which spearheaded the offensive that toppled Assad, including its leader Ahmed al-Sharaa and interim prime minister Mohammad al-Bashir.
Fletcher said he received "the strongest possible reassurances" from Syria's new administration that aid workers would have the necessary access on the ground.
"We need unhindered, unfettered access to the people that we're here to serve. We need the crossings open so we can get massive amounts of aid through... We need to ensure that humanitarian workers can go where they need to go without restriction, with protection," he said.
"I received the strongest possible reassurances from the top of that caretaker administration that they will give us that support that we need. Let's test that now in the period ahead."
Assad's government had long imposed restrictions on humanitarian organizations and on aid distribution in areas of the country outside its control.
Fletcher said that the coming period would be "a test for the UN, which hasn't been able to deliver what we wanted to over a decade now... Can we scale up? Can we gain people's trust?
"But it's also a test for the new administration," he added. "Can they guarantee us a more permissive environment than we had under the Assad regime?
"I believe that we can work in that partnership, but it's a huge test for all of us."