Al-Manar journalist Ali Berro absent from questioning, summoned again for insulting Nawaf Salam

Al-Manar journalist Ali Berro, who was summoned by the Internal Security Forces on the order of the judiciary for questioning on Friday morning after insulting Prime Minister Nawaf Salam a few days ago, was called again to appear on Saturday before the Raouche police-station for further questioning, according to the state-run National News Agency (NNA).

Berro’s lawyer attended the interrogation on his behalf on Friday morning and stated that his client should be heard by the Press Tribunal. Following this, the Attorney General at the Court of Cassation, Jamal Hajjar, requested that the journalist present himself again on Saturday before the same gendarmerie.

Comments 'in a personal capacity'

On Thursday as well, in another video in which he was interviewed, Berro insisted he had not yet been officially notified of his summons, and said that his comments about political leaders did not represent either his employer, Al-Manar, or Hezbollah, and that he made them "in a personal capacity."

On Friday morning, around 11 a.m., the time of his interrogation, the journalist posted another video on his X account, showing himself buying sweets in a shop.

The journalist had posted, on Sept. 25, from the Raouche rock in Beirut during the commemoration of the assassination of former Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah, a video in which he insulted Salam. In this video, Wafic Safa, head of the liaison and coordination unit within the party, appears alongside him, laughing. Berro notably said: "Nawaf, the hajj [Wafic] greets you and says: We're going to light you up, Nawaf, and we're going to put you out."

The journalist went on to comment on the illuminated grotto: "There you go, Nawaf, we've lit it up, despite you and despite your master Yazid," referring to Saudi prince and envoy to Lebanon, Yazid bin Farhan. Three days ago, Berro had also posted another video on social media, filming himself in front of the Serail: "Apparently you want to arrest me. I thought: He's an older gentleman, so I came myself ... Apparently you're upset ... so it's just postponed," he said.

L’Orient-Le Jour attempted to contact Berro three times on Friday morning but was unsuccessful.

The Raouche incident dates back to Sept. 25, when thousands of Hezbollah supporters defied a decision by the prime minister and the governor of Beirut by blocking the road on the city's corniche and projecting the images of the party's two former secretary generals, Hassan Nasrallah and Hachem Safieddine, onto the rock. Opponents of the pro-Iranian party saw this demonstration as an attempt to challenge state authority, at a time when the fate of Hezbollah's arms is a matter of government decision.

The public prosecutor at the Court of Cassation, Jamal Hajjar, issued search and investigation orders against two individuals on Wednesday for projecting images of Hassan Nasrallah and his successor, Hachem Safieddine, onto the Pigeon Rocks of Raouch last week. On Thursday, he questioned two people as part of the inquiry and summoned three others for interrogations on Friday. Also on Thursday, Salam said that "the biggest loser in what happened in Raouche is the credibility of the organizer and those who support them."