U.S. Embassy 'Disheartened' by Assault on al-Jadeed Crew
The U.S. Embassy in Lebanon on Wednesday said it was “disheartened” by the mistreatment of an al-Jadeed TV crew at the hands of Lebanese Customs agents on Tuesday.
The embassy said on its Twitter page that it was “disheartened to see how (Riyad) Qobeissi and other journalists were treated yesterday.”
It added that it was “glad to see that the (caretaker) Justice Minister (Shakib Qortbawi) supports a full investigation so all sides are heard.”
“Government institutions must be accountable to the people and the law,” the embassy said.
The rule of law and freedom of expression are “pillars of a free and stable country,” the embassy stressed.
On Tuesday, al-Jadeed television journalists were assaulted by Customs agents in downtown Beirut after Riyad Qobeissi used a megaphone to demand an interview with Customs acting chief Shafiq Merhi about alleged corruption.
Following a lawsuit filed by the television station, the Central Criminal Investigations Department questioned the crew under the supervision of the state prosecutor for several hours before releasing them.
A statement from the Customs said Tuesday that the journalist used degrading language, adding it was not the appropriate manner to request an interview.
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