Lebanese Army Begins โExamination with Singer Fadel Shakerโ Following Surrender
Ain al-Hilwehโค Camp, Lebanon โค- The Lebanese armyโ announced the commencement of its investigation with Lebanese singer โFadel Shaker on Thursday, hours after he surrendered to authorities at the Hasbah checkpoint at the entrance โฃto the Ain โal-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp. Shaker hadโฃ been in hiding within the camp for โฃover aโ decade, facing accusations ofโ involvementโค in โขthe 2013 Abra โclashes.
Shaker’s decision to surrender comes amid heightenedโ securityโ tensions inside Ainโฃ al-Hilweh. He previously announced his retirement from singingโค in 2012. In 2020, a Militaryโฃ Court sentenced him to 22 years in prisonโข with hard labor, โthough he was acquitted in 2018 โof some charges related to the killing ofโ military personnel โขand forming an armed gang.
His legal representative, Ama Mubarak, stated in Julyโ that โคShaker intended โคto surrender to judicial authorities, with the legal team workingโค to finalizeโข procedures โto settle โhis long-suspendedโ judicialโฃ file. According โtoโฃ a statement released by Shaker’s media office, he initially sought refuge in โthe camp to escape threats to his life, later being surprised by arrest warrants and โขrulingsโ he deemed legally unsound.
“I am innocent, and an absence ruling was issued to prove โmy innocence โฃfrom the โcharge of participatingโค in the fight against the โคarmy, and itโ is available โto everyone thru the media,” Shaker said in theโ statement. He called for a reconsiderationโ of โฃhis case based purelyโ on legal grounds, seeking a fair settlement โขbasedโ solely on the law.
Recent security incidents included an attempted arsonโข attack on โShaker’sโค home within the camp last September, reportedlyโฃ carried out โby militants, though neighbors intervened to prevent significant damage.
