Sunni Sheikh Ahmad Rifai, found dead in Akkar in northern Lebanon. (Credit: NNA)
BEIRUT — The body of Sunni Sheikh Ahmad Rifai, who had been missing since Monday, was found Sunday at dawn near the Nahr al-Bared river, in Akkar in northern Lebanon, a spokesman for the Internal Security Forces confirmed to L'Orient Today.
'Tied up'
In a statement issued on Sunday evening, the ISF said that the lifeless body of the sheikh was found in the locality of Rihaniyeh, near the Bared lake, in an area used as a dumping ground. According to the police, the body was "buried in a pit 3.5 meters deep." The statement adds that Rifai's body was found handcuffed and tied up and that the sheikh had been hit by several bullets.
The ISF also claimed to have arrested "all those involved in the crime," saying that "five members of the Rifai family … kidnapped, killed and then buried the body of the sheikh in accordance with a plan of action developed about a month ago by the head of the municipality of Karkaf (Y. R.) and his son (A. R.)."
The latter "used three of their relatives (A. R.), (Y. R.) and (A. R.) to kidnap" the sheikh, the ISF statement continued. The statement concluded that several others held in relation to the case were released, saying, "the rest of the arrested persons, the Lebanese M. M., Kh. R., M. R. (another son of the head of the municipality) and W. B. are not related to the crime."
Following a search of the home of the head of the municipality, the ISF announced that it had found "large quantities of medium weapons, rockets, ammunition, grenades, TNT explosives and detonators." It added that the arsenal in question was confiscated.
The body of the sheikh was brought back in the afternoon to his home in the village of Karkaf, where a large crowd gathered to welcome him, a photo sent by our correspondent shows.
A large crows escorting the body of Sheikh Ahmad Rifai, on Feb. 26, 2023 in Karkaf, North Lebanon. (Courtesy of our correspondent Michel Hallak)
'Avoiding sedition'
Reacting to the discovery of Rifai's body, Mufti of the Republic Sheikh Abdel-Latif Derian called on the "security and judicial services to accelerate the investigation, determine the circumstances of the death of the sheikh, and impose fair sanctions against those who committed this crime." Derian also thanked the security services who "quickly identified the criminals, avoided sedition and put an end to the rumors that accompanied this incident."
Family dispute
The disappearance of Rifai, who was known for his hostile statements against Hezbollah and the pro-Iranian axis in Lebanon, and who in his last preaching engagement dealt, according to local media, with drug trafficking in areas under the influence of the Shiite party, had raised fears of sectarian tensions in the country. However, a police statement issued Saturday sought to dismiss these fears, saying that the sheikh was kidnapped and killed by relatives, following a family dispute. The ISF announced that they arrested four people on Friday evening, including three of Rifai's "cousins." According to the ISF, two of these suspects confessed to kidnapping and killing the sheikh in the context of an old family dispute. The police had found Rifai's car near Haykal Hospital in Koura on Friday, without its license plates.
When contacted by L'Orient Today, Khaldoun Oraymet, a judge appointed by Dar al-Fatwa to follow this case, confirmed that the suspects are from Karkaf, just like the sheikh.
The investigation into this case is led by Samaranda Nassar, the first investigating judge in North Lebanon.
After rumors surfaced on Saturday that the Syrian Social Nationalist Party (SSNP) was involved in the case, the party, which is close to pro-Iranian groups in the region, issued a statement denying the arrest of one of its senior members. The SSNP condemned "attempts to exploit the incident and cause divisions for derisory reasons."
