Miqati Chairs Ministerial Meeting to Assess Situation at Roumieh Prison

Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Miqati chaired on Monday a meeting on the situation at Roumieh prison and the progress that has so far been achieved in improving conditions there.

The meeting was attended by deputy Premier Samir Moqbel, caretaker Interior Minister Marwan Charbel, caretaker Justice Minister Shakib Qortbawi, and caretaker State Minister Marwan Kheireddine.

Moqbel described the progress made at Roumieh as “pathetic”, adding that the situation at the jail is “tragic.”

The meeting revealed that 75 percent of funds dedicated to improving the jail were spent on installing surveillance cameras at the facility, purchasing ambulances, and properly equipping an operation room.

Five percent of the funds were dedicated to improving conditions at Roumieh prison.

Moqbel revealed however that a large number of the 75 percent of funds were squandered, therefore deeming the situation at Lebanon's largest detention facility as “tragic.”

He added: “We do not want to put anyone on trial and it is not our duty to lay blame over this revelation.”

“We cannot blame the Labor Ministry or Minister for the situation there because they are not qualified to perform duties linked to Roumieh. We should leave this matter to the concerned authorities,” he stressed.

He revealed that another meeting, chaired by Miqati and attended by Qortbawi, the general prosecutor, general financial prosecutor, and head of the inspection bureau, will be held on Wednesday to tackle the findings of Monday's meeting.

Roumieh, the oldest and largest of Lebanon's overcrowded prisons, has witnessed sporadic prison breaks in recent years and escalating riots over the past months as inmates living in poor conditions demand better treatment.

On Friday, a prison guard was arrested as he was attempting to smuggle explosives into the prison to Islamist Fatah al-Islam inmates.