Lebanon will be faced with a predicament should Syrian national security chief Ali Mamlouk become part of a Russian-Lebanese-Syrian committee aimed at ensuring the return of Syrian refugees back to their homeland.
Mamlouk is wanted by the Lebanese state for his involvement in the case of former Minister Michel Samaha, who was sentenced to 13 years with hard labor for plotting to assassinate anti-Syrian Lebanese lawmakers, politicians and clerics at Damascus’ bidding.
Should Mamlouk make an official visit to Lebanon, he must be arrested.
A legal expert told Asharq Al-Awsat: “A warrant for Mamlouk’s arrest had been issued and he has been indicted on terrorist charges.”
“His entry into Lebanon requires the security agencies to arrest him based on the warrant. He should then be referred to the military court that is tasked with examining the criminal charges against him,” he went on to say.
“Should the committee meetings be held in Syria, then Mamlouk cannot be arrested because the Lebanese state has no jurisdiction there,” added the legal expert.
The judiciary had accused Mamlouk and the manager of his office, a colonel known only by his first name Adnan, of conspiring with Samaha in 2012 to transport 25 explosives from Damascus to Beirut. The explosives were to be detonated at Ramadan banquets in northern Lebanon that were going to be attended by anti-Syria officials.
Their plot failed after an informant, Milad Kfouri, revealed their plans to security agencies.
