Four Generals Released after Four Years of Arbitrary Detention

Four Lebanese Generals arbitrarily detained for nearly four years over the assassination of Lebanon's former Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri without charges or trial were released on Wednesday following a ruling to that effect by a special UN court.

The four were escorted separately out of Roumieh prison on the outskirts of Beirut in a convoy of vehicles after the pre-trial judge at The Hague-based Special Tribunal for Lebanon said there was insufficient evidence to charge them.

They are the former head of the presidential guard, Mustafa Hamdan, security services director Jamil Sayyed, domestic security chief Ali Hajj and military intelligence chief Raymond Azar.

The four Generals were received by their families, friends and supporters with happiness and joy. Festivals were organized near the officers' homes to celebrate the "victory" represented by their release.

In their first public appearance, the four officers stressed that the STL confirmed their innocence, adding that they wished the Lebanese judiciary took such verdict, not a foreign one.

General Jamil Sayyed addressed crowds in front of his residence and told them that with the release of the four Generals, the only prisoner left is the martyr Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri. "His jailer is the Lebanese judiciary," he said. General Sayyed said that Hariri's son, head of the Future movement MP Saad Hariri, wants the truth. "However, his associates don't," Sayyed emphasized, adding that Hariri jr. embraced people who do not want to uncover the truth.

Sayyed said that Hariri was either deluded or he traded politics with his father, urging him to hold judges Said Mirza and Saqr Saqr accountable. "Never in the history of Lebanon have people been jailed for four years with no charge or evidence," he said. "I thank everyone who stood by us, and above all Hizbullah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah," he added.

For his part, General Ali Al-Hajj said from his residence that what happened during the last 4 years was concealment of the truth. "We had hoped Lebanon judiciary had taken the decision to release us, not the STL," he added.

General Raymond Azar, who was also greeted by welcoming crowds at his residence in Ballouna, said that the release gave the four officers justice. "Our right was guaranteed from the first day of arrest," he stressed.

The Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) has earlier decided that the four Lebanese Generals be released, after nearly four years of detention over the assassination of Lebanon's former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri yet without charges or trial.

Pre-Trial Judge Daniel Francine ordered in a press conference the immediate release of the Generals. Francine has taken his decision Wednesday based on Judge Daniel Bellemare's recommendation presented to the STL on Monday.

Shortly after the announcement, people took to the streets spontaneously to express their satisfaction and joy, and fireworks lit the sky of Lebanon.

The officers are the former head of the presidential guard, Mustafa Hamdan, Security Services Director Jamil Sayyed, Domestic Security chief Ali Hajj and Military Intelligence chief Raymond Azar.

The lawyers and the families of the Generals warmly welcomed the STL decision. "Justice is served after 44 months. This should have taken place 43 months before," Naji Boustani, General Moustapha Hamdan's lawyer said. Boustani added that Judge Francine has been neutral and fair in his decision.

"This is exactly what I have been waiting for. There is nothing in the file that links the generals to the Hariri crime," Issam Karam, General Ali Hajj's lawyer said.

Justice Minister Ibrahim Najjar said that he will immediately comply with the tribunal's decision and release the officers without delay.

For his part, Interior Minister Ziad Baroud said in a press conference that the state of Lebanon will comply with the tribunal's decision. "Once the decision was taken, release procedures to release the officers got underway," he said.

Well informed judicial sources have told Al-Manar that procedure are underway to release the officers today as an STL representatives arrive in Beirut to follow-up on General Prosecutor Judge Daniel Bellemare's decision on four generals' case.

The officers are the former head of the presidential guard, Mustafa Hamdan, Security Services Director Jamil Sayyed, Domestic Security chief Ali Hajj and Military Intelligence chief Raymond Azar.

The court ruling was broadcast live on Lebanese television.