Dozens Protest outside French Embassy, Demand Georges Abdallah's Release
Dozens of protesters gathered on Tuesday outside the French embassy in Beirut demanding the release of militant Georges Ibrahim Abdallah who has spent 28 years in French jails.
The demonstration was held after French prosecutors appealed a Paris court's decision to grant parole to the pro-Palestinian militant, effectively keeping the 61-year-old behind bars.
"Freedom for Georges Abdallah!" chanted the protesters.
Abdallah was arrested in 1984 and sentenced to life in prison three years later for his alleged involvement in the 1982 murders of U.S. military attache Charles Robert Ray and Israeli diplomat Yacov Barsimantov.
"My feeling is that France, by continuing to hold Georges, is just working under the orders of the United States administration," said Abdallah's brother, 65-year-old Joseph Abdallah.
"But we still have hope he will be freed. He is a fighter," he added.
Abdallah's eighth appeal for parole was granted on condition that he be deported immediately, but his hopes of being freed were dashed when state prosecutors launched their legal challenge.
Abdallah had been eligible for parole from 1999 onwards but failed in seven previous bids to be released.
Source: Agence France Presse
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