The military tribunal
issued the death sentence on Thursday against 26 individuals for their
involvement in the 2011 abduction of the seven Estonian cyclists.
The tribunal had charged
29 suspects for being involved in the crime, as well as a number of others
committed in Lebanon
Besides their
involvement in the abduction, the suspects were charged with forming a crime
gang, undermining the authority of the state, being associated with the Fatah
al-Islam militant group, using unauthorized weapons, killing security forces
member Rashed Sabri, and attacking members of the Internal Security Forces
Intelligence Bureau.
They have also been
found guilty of armed robbery and forging Lebanese passports and identification
cards.
In addition, they have
been charged with bombing stores that sell liquor and vandalizing Christian
monuments.
Of the 29 suspects, nine
are in custody, while the rest remain at large and they include a Syrian
national, Mohammed Ahmed Ahmed, also known as Abu Zarif, who has been held by
the Syrian authorities.
He has not yet been
handed over to Lebanese authorities.
The seven Estonian
cyclists were kidnapped in Lebanon
in March 2011 as they entered the country from Syria
They were abducted in
the eastern Bekaa and kept in captivity in Lebanon
and Syria
Wael Abbas, the
suspected ringleader in the abduction, was arrested in November 2011.
He was detained by
Syrian security forces as he was attempting to escape to the country through a
false ID.
In September, the
Internal Security Forces killed two accomplices of the alleged mastermind
behind the kidnapping during clashes in the area of al-Bireh in Rashaya.
Later that month, two
Intelligence Branch officers were injured when they were ambushed by armed men
in the hunt for the kidnappers in the village of Jlala
Source: Naharnet
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