Syria says 300 Syrian inmates in Lebanese prisons to be transferred home
DAMASCUS, Syria (North Press) – Mohammed Taha al-Ahmad, Director of Arab Affairs at Syria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, said on Saturday that 300 Syrian nationals currently held in Lebanese prisons will be transferred to Syria.
In a statement to Syria’s state-run Al-Ikhbariya TV, al-Ahmad said the transfer process would take place after the completion of necessary consular procedures, paving the way for the inmates’ transfer to Syrian territory.
He added that prisoners transferred to Syrian prisons would have the right to request a retrial.
According to the Syrian official, the agreement covers all felony cases “except rape and murder.”
Al-Ahmad also noted that, with regard to “remnants of the former regime,” coordination is underway with Lebanon to return them to Syria.
He stressed that there is ongoing cooperation with the Lebanese prison administration to provide necessary care for inmates, particularly those who are ill.
For his part, Syrian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Asaad al-Shaibani said that concluding the agreement on the file of Syrian prisoners with the Lebanese government “constitutes a historic milestone toward closing this painful chapter for our people and serves as a foundation for strong strategic relations that benefit the interests of both brotherly countries.”
At the end of January, Lebanon’s Al-Akhbar newspaper published a draft agreement between Lebanon and Syria related to the release of Syrian detainees in Lebanese prisons.
The draft included a legal framework for transferring convicted prisoners from the country of sentencing to the detainee’s home country.
On Feb. 4, Lebanon and Syria signed a bilateral agreement concerning the transfer of convicted prisoners of each country to prisons in their home states.
The agreement was signed during an official meeting in Beirut between Lebanese Deputy Prime Minister Tarek Mitri and Syrian Minister of Justice Mazhar al-Wais.