Salam urges cancellation of all security agency blacklists

BEIRUT — Prime Minister Nawaf Salam has called on the “security services and armed forces” to “immediately [...] cancel all wanted notices and watch lists” issued without judicial decisions, i.e. “blacklists” of individuals that are not based on judicial decisions, in a government note sent on Wednesday to the institutions concerned.

The letter has been sent to the army via the Ministry of Defense, the Internal Security Forces (ISF) and General Security via the Minister of the Interior, to Customs via the Ministry of Finance and State Security via the Supreme Defense Council.

In his text, Salam calls for the “immediate suspension of all execution, transmission or processing of arrest documents and watch lists issued by the military and security services, particularly in relation to arrests, except in cases where a well-founded judicial decision exists”. Arrests can therefore only be carried out if there is an official notification, arrest warrant or wanted notice issued by the competent judicial authority, insists the text.

This decision was taken after it was found that some of these lists and documents are still in circulation and have not been previously cancelled, despite a decision to this effect taken by the cabinet on July 24, 2014.

Read more

Salam's Cabinet marks 100 days: What has it accomplished so far?

The use of these lists constitutes “a violation of the law and principles relating to personal freedom, human rights, and guarantees against abuse of power, according to the text sent by Salam.

These documents may expose the persons concerned to the risk of arbitrary arrest or restrictions, without a well-founded judicial decision”. In particular, he cites “certain services of the General Security” which still use such documents “despite their legal nullity”.

The Prime Minister added that he has sent a letter to the General Directorate of General Security, which replied that it "neither considers nor enforces contact or surveillance documents not issued by authorized bodies."

General Security — the administration in charge of controlling people entering and exiting Lebanon — was known to have such a list for people accused of "collaboration" with Israel.

Contacted by L'Orient Today, a source in the GS was not immediately available to comment. 

The Army and the ISF mentioned they had no additional information to give than what was included in Salam's memo. ISF insisted they don't issue any surveillance lists.

Commenting on the government's decision, MP Adib Abdel Massih wrote on X: “We support Prime Minister Nawaf Salam's decision to cancel wanted notices, considering it a bold step towards respecting freedoms and preserving the dignity of citizens, especially the people of the north who have been subjected to injustice through these lists without trials. We call for the completion of this process by stabilizing the role of the judiciary and ending arbitrary arrests, in order to achieve justice and build the state of law.”

Former MP Kazem Khair thanked Salam for the decision: "This has been the demand of the people of the North for a long time, respecting freedoms and preserving dignity. These notices represented an arbitrary measure and political blackmail at times, which affected many Lebanese, especially the people of the North. We hope that this process will be completed by adopting laws that preserve the independence of the judiciary and remove favoritism from judicial appointments."

A brave step

General Security — the agency responsible for monitoring entries and exits at Lebanon’s borders — is known for maintaining lists, especially at Beirut’s international airport, of individuals accused of “collaboration” with Israel. Passengers, including public or cultural figures, have at times been detained upon arrival due to their names appearing on these lists. Contacted by L’Orient Today, General Security was not immediately available for comment.

The Lebanese Army and Internal Security Forces (ISF) told our publication they had no further information beyond what was mentioned in the Prime Minister’s letter. The ISF emphasized that they do not publish any surveillance lists.

Welcoming the Prime Minister’s move on X, independent MP Adib Abdel Massih called it “a brave step toward respecting freedoms and preserving the dignity of citizens, especially those from the North who were victims of injustice through these lists without trial.”

Massih explained to L'Orient Today the reason behind his focus on people from the North in the context of this decision, saying that there are a lot of Islamists from Northern Lebanon who are in prisons with no charge or accusation against them, but only wanted notices.