A view of Al-Qammoua in Akkar, North Lebanon. (Credit: Michel Hallak/L'Orient Today)
BEIRUT — The Internal Security Forces arrested a man who allegedly mistakenly shot his nephew in Al-Qammoua, Akkar earlier in June, the Information Division said in a statement Thursday. The statement explained that another man who was present at the time of the crime was also arrested.
In June a shephard found a dead body with gunshot wounds on the outskirts of Fnaidek, in Akkar. No one was able to identify the body due to the disfigurement of the face, the statement explained, noting that the forensic examination of the body found that it had been shot twice in the back.
The ISF launched an investigation and discovered that the murdered man was a young Lebanese doctor. The investigation revealed that the man was last seen with his uncle and another man.
The two men were arrested earlier in July in Al-Qammoua, Akkar. The uncle confessed that he had gone with the other man and his now deceased nephew to a disputed area between Fnaidek and Al-Qammoua. Armed with military weapons, the three men had the aim of shooting at the residents to intimidate them and pressure them to leave the area.
As they were shooting, the nephew stepped in front of the uncle. The uncle did not see him in the dark and accidentally shot and killed him. The uncle allegedly kept quiet about the accident, fearing the victims’ father’s reaction.
The man accompanying him confirmed the story, and added that he was told to remain silent on the matter and that the culprit would surrender himself to the security services after the burial ceremony. The perpetrator did not turn himself in.
The two men were arrested, the statement concluded.
Armed clashes and gunfire take place regularly in the country, especially in neglected areas like Akkar and the Bekaa where weapons circulate freely. The state of security in Lebanon has been exacerbated by the economic crisis.