Asharq Al-Awsat learned on Saturday that the Lebanese Army Directorate of Intelligence was questioning a person who was reportedly aware of Abdul-Rahman Mabsout's possession of the weapon he used to carry out his terrorist crime in Lebanon’s northern city of Tripoli last Monday.
Sources close to the Tripoli attack investigations said that currently investigations focus on gathering, checking, and then documenting information in an attempt to make sure that no instigator or operator had incited the terrorist to commit his crime.
The sources said that such investigations were necessary, particularly because some suspects held in police custody admitted they were aware that Mabsout bought the weapon that he used to execute his attack.
Investigations currently revolve around three presumptions: Either Mabsout suffers from a mental disorder, or he was assisted by several people, or he acted as a “lone wolf”.
Last Monday’s security development is considered the first to occur since more than 2 years ago, during which Lebanon witnessed a stable security situation as the Army and security forces chased fugitives and ex-fighters coming from Syria.
The sources said Mabsout sold the furniture of his house as he prepared to commit his terrorist attack.
“Currently, investigations should reveal whether Mabsout paid the furniture money to buy the weapon used in the attack or whether an operator is responsible for providing him with the logistics facilities,” the sources said.
They added that investigations also revolve around the motorcycle he was riding when he opened fire on police and army vehicles in the city last Monday, amid reports saying this motorcycle was not his own.
The sources also ruled out that Mabsout had participated in the clashes that raged between Jabal Mohsen and Bab Al-Tabaneh in Tripoli or headed to Arsal in the Bekaa to fight along extremist groups before the Army dismantled those organizations during the August 2017 Fajr Al Jurud operation.
