Kabalan: The abduction of Ahmad Chokr, a foreign operation enabled by Lebanon's insecurity

Jaafari Mufti Ahmad Kabalan, an ally of Hezbollah, expressed outrage Saturday over the uncertainty surrounding the Dec. 19 abduction of Ahmad Ali Chokr, a former General Security officer. “We are facing an operation carried out by foreign security services that took advantage of the insecurity prevailing in Lebanon, especially in certain regions left to their fate,” he said in a statement published by the state-run National News Agency.

Chokr, whose brother is suspected of having been involved in the 1986 capture of the renowned Israeli pilot Ron Arad, has disappeared, and suspicions have fallen on Israeli agents who may have killed him or transferred him to Israel. On Dec. 19, he was reportedly lured away from his home by two people of Swedish nationality and Lebanese origin and has not been seen since, according to Lebanese judicial and security sources.

“We demand, as an essential component of this country, real answers; we will accept nothing less than the full truth and accountability for those responsible for this failure,” Sheikh Kabalan said. He lamented that “security services operate differently depending on the region,” noting that “some benefit from preventive security, and others do not.”

Aside from Vice President of the Higher Shiite Council Ali el-Khatib, also close to the Shiite duo, and a few local officials, Lebanese authorities have not commented on Chokr’s disappearance.