Caretaker Interior Minister Bassam Mawlawi (center) on Aug. 23, 2023, meeting relatives of Elias Hasrouni, a former LF official found dead earlier this month in Ain Ibl. (Credit: NNA)
BEIRUT — Caretaker Interior Minister Massam Mawlawi promised a "completed" investigation into the death earlier this month of former Lebanese Forces official Elias Hasrouni, amid accusations by LF leader Samir Geagea that Hezbollah murdered him.
Hasrouni, 72, was found dead on Aug. 2 in the southern Lebanon village of Ain Ibl, in what was initially reported to be a car accident. Ain Ibl is a predominantly Christian village in an otherwise predominantly Shiite region of southern Lebanon.
However, Ain Ibl mayor Imad Allous, as well as LF and Kataeb officials, later asserted that Hasrouni had been kidnapped and murdered, after examining surveillance camera videos. They have pointed the blame at Hezbollah.
Hezbollah officials have yet to publicly comment on the incident.
Mawlawi met on Wednesday with Hasrouni's relatives, vowing that an ongoing investigation into the death "will be completed."
"The minister assured us that the investigation would be completed, and said he would follow it up with transparency and seriousness," Allous, who was also at Wednesday's meeting, said in a statement published by the state-run National News Agency.
"I hope that all the information will be passed on to the relevant judicial authorities as soon as possible," Allous added.
On Aug. 14, Geagea accused Hezbollah of involvement in Hasrouni's death, citing "available information," while the investigation is ongoing.
"We are awaiting the investigations of the security services, but according to the information available, suspicions point to the involvement of Hezbollah," he said.
Hasrouni's relatives also met on Wednesday with the Lebanese Army commander Joseph Aoun, according to a statement by the military on X (formerly Twitter).