Sheikh Khaldoun Oraymet welcoming visitors at his home, in Akkar, on Dec. 21, 2025. (Credit: courtesy of Michel Hallak)
The Beirut criminal court, presided over by Bilal Dennawi, has indefinitely postponed the hearing in the Abu Omar case, originally scheduled for Wednesday.
Judge Dennawi instructed the army service responsible for bringing the defendants to the Palace of Justice not to transfer them. The individuals concerned are Moustapha Hessiane, also known as Abu Omar, a car mechanic from Akkar (North Lebanon) who allegedly posed as a member of Saudi Arabia's royal court to Lebanese political figures and business people and Khaled Oraymet, a Sunni sheikh who is said to have played a key role in facilitating contact between the impostor and his alleged victims.
Abu Omar and Sheikh Oraymet have been in detention since last December, while another Sunni sheikh, Khaled Sabsabi, accused of giving false testimony, remains free on the condition of having declared a residence. He is said to have told the prosecutor's office that he himself introduced "Abu Omar" to Sheikh Oraymet, before retracting, explaining that he wanted to protect the latter and prevent the courts from holding him responsible for the fraud with which he is charged.
The postponement of this hearing was prompted by the criminal court's need to send the file to the Court of Cassation chamber presided over by Souheir Harakeh. This transfer took place following an appeal filed a few days ago by Sheikh Sabsabi against the indictment issued against him last May by the indictment chamber presided over by Kamal Nassar. That chamber had referred Sheikh Sabsabi to the criminal court for "false testimony," describing this as the "crime of exposing Lebanon to the risk of hostile acts, disturbing its relations with a foreign state," in this case Saudi Arabia.
The accusation was decided by a majority of the members, with Judge Nassar differing from his two advisors, as he considered that relations between Lebanon and Saudi Arabia had not suffered any damage and therefore the elements of the offense of false testimony were not present in this case.
According to a judicial source interviewed by L’Orient-Le Jour, the Court of Cassation has yet to rule on Sheikh Sabsabi's appeal. Meanwhile, Sheikh Oraymet has submitted a request for release to the prosecutor’s office, which was rejected. Since it is up to the criminal court to decide on this request, the file was temporarily returned to it. According to our information, the court is expected to rule next week, before sending the file back to the Court of Cassation.
The latter will then rule on Sheikh Sabsabi's appeal, deciding whether or not to uphold the charge of false testimony against him. Only after this decision is made will the file return to the criminal court, which will then be able to hold hearings dedicated, in particular, to the questioning of witnesses and to the pleadings by the defense attorneys.
Hacking Lebanese Politics #36: Is Lebanon about to abolish the death penalty?
Thai crew of ship struck in Gulf sues operators