Baalbek-Hermel Candidate Arrested, Hizbullah Accused of Framing Him
An anti-Hizbullah Shiite cleric was arrested Thursday by General Security on an outstanding arrest warrant, the National News Agency reported.
NNA said Sheikh Abbas al-Jawhari, a candidate running for a parliamentary seat in the Baalbek-Hermel district, was apprehended by General Security at its Beirut headquarters upon his filing of a passport application.
“General Security found out that he is wanted on an outstanding arrest warrant over a drug-related offense, referring him to Mount Lebanon's public prosecution for interrogation,” the agency added.
General Security later issued a statement saying al-Jawhari was apprehended after arriving at its headquarters to carry out a transaction related to a domestic worker.
“It turned out that there is an outstanding arrest warrant against him carrying the number 86/869 and issued on February 12, 2018 by Mount Lebanon's examining magistrate over a drug-related offense. After consulting Mount Lebanon's public prosecution, it ordered the arrest of Sheikh al-Jawhari and demanded that he be referred to it,” General Security said.
“Accordingly, the cleric was referred to the aforementioned public prosecutor's office on the same date,” the security agency added.
Al-Jawhari's press office meanwhile issued a statement explaining its account of events.
“Around five years ago, a brother of incumbent MP Hussein al-Moussawi rented an apartment in Baalbek for eighth months... Sheikh Abbas al-Jawhari had rented the same apartment before Mr. Moussawi,” the press office said.
“After Mr. Moussawi's departure from the rental apartment, a quantity of Captagon was seized in it and both Mr. Moussawi and Sheikh Abbas al-Jawhari were subjected to an investigation. It turned out later that it was a malicious ploy by Hizbullah to frame Sheikh Abbas al-Jawhari and target him over his opposition to Hizbullah's fighting in Syria,” the office added.
“Sheikh al-Jawhari issued later a statement confirming his innocence and the fabricated ploy,” the office said.
It added that the cleric was arrested Thursday “under the alibi of the same file.”
“Hizbullah exerted pressure to oust Sheikh al-Jawhari from the race for the 2018 parliament because the cleric is the only Shiite who has the ability to clinch a seat from Hizbullah's list,” the press office alleged.
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