Naharnet

Defected Cleric Says Syrian Regime Involved in Assassination Bid against Shaar

The Mufti of Tripoli and the north Sheikh Malek al-Shaar revealed on Wednesday details surrounding the alleged death threats he had received and which made him decide to prolong his stay in Europe.

In an interview on Future TV, al-Shaar said: “I have received several phone calls and I even met with army officers that advised me to be cautious as my movements are being watched”.

Meanwhile, Abdul Jalil Saeed, a cleric defected from the Dar al-Fatwa in Syria revealed in a taped interview that Ibrahim Hamad, a captain in the Syrian intelligence, has been collecting information about the northern Mufti.

"Hamad came to Beirut many times and met with several figures at the office of (Loyalty to Resistance) MP Nawwaf Moussawi,” Saeed said.

"I have been informed by people in the Syrian Dar al-Fatwa that he (Hamad) was going to personally supervise the assassination operation from the Bekaa region,” he added, explaining that al-Shaar was supposed to be targeted near the residence of the Bekaa Mufti Mohammed Khalil al-Mayss.

Saeed also said that two members of the Lebanese Dar al-Fatwa are involved in this assassination attempt.

"The operation was going to look like an accident involving alcohol or something similar to Sheikh Ahmed Abdul Wahed's assassination,” he explained.

On May 20, Abdul Wahed's vehicle was stopped at an army checkpoint in the northern region of Kweikhat where he was killed.

"What I have just heard makes me believe even more that these death threats are true,” al-Shaar commented, adding that “all assassinations in Lebanon started with rumors and fabricated stories, and the proof is al-Akhbar's (newspaper) latest stories about me”.

After al-Shaar announced that he had received death threats, al-Akhbar newspaper reported that the mufti was threatened because his son had sold non-existent properties in the Tripoli area of Ras al-Sakhr to members of Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime.

The Mufti denied the newspaper's reports during Wednesday's interview.

Sheikh al-Shaar announced in early December that he will not be returning to Lebanon from a trip to Europe after he has allegedly received death threats.

Radio Voice of Lebanon (93.3) said al-Shaar was attending a conference in Vienna and then left for Paris where he will reside until his return.


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