Nour Rida
At the age of 61, Lebanese Pro-Palestinian activist leaves France to set foot again in his homeland, after spending 28 years behind bars in French prisons.
Georges Ibrahim Abdallah is a pro-Palestinian Lebanese leftist who joined the Syrian Social Nationalist Party and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine in the 1960s, before joining the Lebanese Armed Revolutionary Factions.
He was arrested in 1984 and sentenced for life prison in 1987 for charges on the murder of American Lieutenant Col. Charles Ray and the killing of an "Israeli" diplomat, Yacov Barsimentov, in Paris, even though no concrete evidence was presented.
"Abdallah, who will definitely arrive on Monday to Lebanon, will join
the fleet of liberated Lebanese detainees who had spent years behind "Israeli"
bars for supporting a just cause and then triumphed and attained freedom,"
member of the International Campaign to Free Georges Abdallah [ICFGA] Bassam
al-Kontar told moqawama.org. Also a journalist, al-Kontar stressed that Abdallah will be freed and should arrive to Lebanon on Monday, noting that the schedule of the reception will be announced in detail on Sunday during a press conference the campaign will hold.
He accentuated "there is no intention for the ruling to be reversed and keep Abdallah behind bars, the release is definite" especially that the entire Georges Abdallah case has been a notorious scandal for France."
"Major political and security French officials assured that the Abdallah case was a scandal on the French judiciary level, elaborating that Abdallah fell victim of a fabricated plot."
According to al-Kontar, "today, France frees itself from US and "Israeli" pressures for a simple reason, which is its failure in prosecuting Abdallah."
The journalist further said that the campaign organizers in Lebanon contacted political powers, demanding a courteous official reception for Abdallah, "all the way from French Charles de Gaulle Airport, reaching Beirut Rafik Hariri Airport and then heading to his hometown in the North."
"The Lebanese state should hold an official reception ceremony for Abdallah, who was a resistance fighter in face of the "Israeli" occupation and paid his life for the sake of his people and land's freedom," the activist suggested, adding that Abdallah's freedom is another accomplishment to be added to the Resistance achievements, be it the 2000 "Israeli" withdrawal from Lebanon, the 2004 and 2008 detainees' liberation, or the 2006 Divine victory."
Abdallah became eligible for parole after 18 years in prison in the year 1999, but all his seven requests for release were rejected; which constitutes a major breach of French legal procedures and the European Convention on Human Rights.
On US pressures to keep Abdallah jailed, al-Kontar explained "All US previous and current pressures had led to the arbitrary imprisonment of Abdallah since 1999; also the US ambassador in France refused the liberation of Abdallah, considering he did not regret his actions and did not apologize." But as al-Kontar says it Abdallah was only practicing his right in defending his country and people."
The popular pressure, particularly embodied in the
International campaign that included different countries such as Lebanon,
France, Belguim, Argentina, Tunisia, and Switzerland, proved fruitful and put
the weak French stance in the limelight, as no longer can France hide the fact
that it had held Abdallah on arbitrary terms for long. The US has threatened several times to liquidate Abdallah, and so, al-Kontar drew attention to the fact that the French government is responsible of Abdallah's safety until the moment he arrives to Lebanon.
Earlier on Thursday, Abdallah's lawyer, Jacques Verges deplored American influence on Abdallah's case.
"His imprisonment is a scandal, a shame for France," Verges told French channel iTélé Thursday. "It is time for French justice to act, not like the whore of an American pimp, but like an independent justice."
On 27 November 2012 the International Campaign to Free Georges Abdallah [ICFGA] held a protest near the French Embassy in Beirut in solidarity with Abdallah and to denounce the appeal by the state prosecutor (French Ministry of Justice) against the Paris court decision that granted him parole.
Source: moqawama.org
River to Sea
Uprooted Palestinian 
The views expressed in this article are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of this Blog!
No comments:
Post a Comment