Lebanon approves release of singer-turned-militant Fadl Shaker, judicial official says

The Lebanese judiciary on Wednesday approved the release of singer-turned-militant Fadl Shaker months after he surrendered himself to authorities, a judicial official told AFP.

The entertainer, born to a Lebanese father and a Palestinian mother, turned himself in to authorities in October after more than a decade in hiding in a Palestinian refugee camp.

Shaker was accused of taking part in 2013 clashes in the south Lebanon city of Saida between the military and supporters of Salafist Sheikh Ahmad al-Assir, which left more than a dozen soldiers dead.

While Shaker was a supporter of Assir, he denied involvement in the violence.

The judicial official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the judiciary "approved the release of artist Fadl Shaker in the four security cases filed against him, most notably the Abra case," referring to the Saida clashes.

"The court released Fadl Shaker in three cases on bail of 100 million Lebanese Liras ($1,117) for each case, and 200 million Lebanese Liras for the Abra case," the official added.

According to the official, Shaker is expected to leave prison on Wednesday after his legal team posted bail.

In 2020, Lebanon's military tribunal sentenced Shaker to 22 years in prison for providing financial and logistical support to the "terrorist" Assir-led group.

While on the run, Shaker was convicted in absentia in several cases and sentenced to prison terms ranging from five to 15 years of hard labour.

Shaker was also accused, alongside Assir and four others, of the attempted murder of Hilal Hammoud, a local official with the Hezbollah-allied Lebanese Resistance Brigades.

They were all acquitted in this case in May due to "insufficient evidence."

In the months leading up to his surrender in October, Shaker released new songs, recorded in the refugee camp, that topped charts in the Arab world.