With regard to the competence of the Judicial Council to hear the case, it is necessary to recall that it receives its cases by referral from the Council of Ministers, "in contradiction of the principles of separation of power, independence of the judiciary and equality before the law", as noted by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights on the occasion of the Universal Periodic Review of Lebanon in November 2010. In the case of the Nahr Al Bared file, it was on 7 June 2007 that the Council of Ministers, then headed by Mr Fouad Siniora, decided that the detainees would eventually be brought before this body. The decisions of the Judicial Council are furthermore final and are not subject to appeal, thereby depriving the defendants of their possibility to appeal to a higher authority, an essential component of the right to due process.

Alkarama also notes that the excessive periods of custody – in some cases of several months – and the ongoing pre-trial detention of the majority of the defendants violate their right to liberty and security of person enshrined in Article 9 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. They remain in custody at Roumieh prison to this day, up to 68 months after their arrest.

The judicial authorities justify this particularly long pre-trial detention by referring to Article 108 of the Lebanese Code of Criminal Procedure, which does not limit the period of remand for certain crimes, for example in matters of State security. Effectively authorising indefinite detention of suspects, this legal provision is clearly contrary to international law and the ongoing detention of the defendants is therefore arbitrary.

On the occasion of the start of the Nahr Al Bared trial, Alkarama reminds the Lebanese authorities of their obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Convention against Torture, which includes ensuring that the trial of the accused complies with international fair trial standards .

Alkarama in particular calls on the authorities make sure to take into account all past violations in terms of due process and act accordingly. This includes that investigations into the allegations of torture expressed by the defendants are systematically carried out to ensure that confessions extracted under torture are not used as evidence in court.

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For more information in Arabic, please contact:

- Mr Saadeddine Shatila

+961 1 653 150 ; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

For information in French or English, please contact:

- Ms Theresa Stienen