Hariri Meets Islamist Prisoners' Families, Urges Beirut Voter Turnout
Prime Minister Saad Hariri met Sunday afternoon with families of Islamist prisoners at the Quality Inn Hotel in Tripoli, his office said.
The families have been staging protests for several weeks, demanding a “general amnesty” for their sons ahead of the parliamentary elections.
Lebanese authorities have rounded up hundreds of Sunni Islamists over the last years, including some involved in bombings against civilians and deadly clashes with the Lebanese Army. They also include extremists believed to belong to al-Qaida-linked groups and the Islamic State group.
A lot of Islamist prisoners and their families have decried delay in judicial procedures and trials. Some prisoners are held for several years without trial or conviction.
Earlier in the day, Hariri attended a breakfast at the Manara Palace Cafe in Beirut, in the presence of ex-MP Mohammed al-Amin Itani, Mustaqbal Movement candidates for the Beirut district, and a number of Beiruti dignitaries and families.
“Today Beirut is angry, because some are trying to put their hands on it,” Hariri said.
“This time we cannot stay home and say that the list would win anyway. In these elections, the more the voter turnout rises, the more the chances of the rival lists will diminish,” the premier noted.
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