Appeal Session in Georges Ibrahim Abdallah's Case Postponed to February 28

A French court postponed on Monday the appeal session related to the release of Georges Ibrahim Abdallah to February 28, as the supporters of the former Lebanese leftist militant rallied in front of the French Embassy in Beirut demanding his release.

“We will carry on with our sit-in,” confirmed the protesters, revealing that a ministerial committee will be formed to follow up on this case.

A French court granted Abdallah, 61, parole in November on condition he be deported but the interior ministry had yet to issue the deportation order. The court had postponed its decision on his release until January 28.

Abdallah was convicted for his part in the 1982 murders in Paris of U.S. military attache Charles Robert Ray and Israeli diplomat Yacov Barsimantov.

He was handed down a life sentence in 1987.

Abdallah, jailed for nearly three decades, has been eligible for parole since 1999 but seven previous applications were all rejected in what the militant's lawyer and supporters claim was U.S. pressure.

The U.S. ambassador to France, Charles Rivkin, has criticized the decision to grant him parole, arguing that Abdallah had never expressed remorse and could yet be a threat if released.