Motorcycles pass by photos of Iran's former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in the southern suburbs of Beirut. (Credit: AFP)
BEIRUT — Mohammad Naim Qassem, the son of Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem, on Sunday categorically denied allegations by MP Paula Yaacoubian that he was linked to a medicine warehouse raided by security forces in Galerie Semaan, near Beirut’s southern suburbs Friday, describing the claims as “false and unrelated to the truth.”
In a statement, Qassem said Yaacoubian should have "verified the information before making accusations," citing her responsibilities as a member of Parliament. He said "the case was in the hands of the competent security and judicial authorities, which were responsible for establishing the facts and determining accountability in accordance with the law."
Qassem also said he "reserved the right to take legal action against anyone who implicated him in the case without evidence."
In a post on X on Sunday, Yaacoubian called for "a transparent investigation into the alleged links between Qassem and businessman Youssef Ghassan al-Amin, whose companies have been mentioned in connection with the raided medicine warehouses."
Yaacoubian said "information circulating in the pharmaceutical sector pointed to a partnership that allegedly began under former Health Minister Hamad Hassan, during the period of exceptional medicine imports amid the coronavirus pandemic, and extended to Iraq."
She called for "successive health ministers to be heard as part of the investigation and for authorities to examine possible interventions to facilitate exceptional medicine import licenses." She also urged "investigators to identify the companies’ actual beneficiaries and ownership structures through declarations and documents required under anti-money laundering rules."
“Denials and responses do not replace a transparent investigation” that reveals the truth to the public, Yaacoubian wrote.
Warehouse raid sparks confrontation
The dispute follows Friday’s raid by the Internal Security Forces on pharmaceutical warehouses in Galerie Semaan, where officers seized medicines deemed unfit for consumption and sealed a warehouse under a judicial order issued by Prosecutor General at the Court of Cassation Ahmad Rami Hajj, following a referral from Health Minister Rakan Nassereddine.
Dozens of armed men reportedly surrounded a judicial police patrol during the operation and demanded that its commander withdraw. The men left after Lebanese Army reinforcements arrived, according to local media reports.
Hezbollah denied any direct or indirect connection to the warehouse or its contents, while arguing that the security patrol had entered a sensitive area without following what the group described as an agreed coordination mechanism with security authorities.