One of the many civilians who have been recently charged with “terrorism” by the military court for protesting, announced that he is going on a hunger strike, in a letter his lawyers received from the imprisonment center.
Omar Al-Bekai, who was detained among 35 protesters in Tripoli, wrote a letter to his lawyers describing the unethical and inhumane torture he and the other protesters have been subjected to.
“Today marks the 20th day we’ve been imprisoned, under charges you both know are empty lies,” Al-Bekai wrote in the letter. “Unfortunately, living here is more difficult than anything anyone can experience.”
“I’ve been through multiple panic and anxiety attacks, and I’ve been sent to a military hospital where I was injected with two needles of tranquilizers,” he added. “I can only manage to get some sleep with the help of a tranquilizer,” he said.
Al-Bekai hoped in his letter that the suffering of the detained protesters can reach the whole public, given that the people protesting every day against the military’s court ruling have been consistent and rigorous in their daily demonstrations.
“I announce that I am going on a hunger strike, and what God has written for me will happen,” Al-Bekai wrote.
Acknowledging the efforts of his fellow protesters, he said: “I know you did not fall short, you are like my family, but the exhaustion has grown a lot more.”
Al-Bekai, much like the other charged civilians, had been living under extremely harsh conditions even before the coronavirus took over the nation.
With the most recent total lockdown, impoverished families had absolutely no means to earn their daily bread while businesses were forced to close, with no financial assistance from the government in sight.
Thus, Tripoli, the second-largest city in the country, saw hundreds of families demonstrating while being torn apart by the dilemma of choosing to die by COVID-19 or from hunger.
These unjustified charges against citizens, who after all were only demanding that their ruling officials duly assume their responsibilities towards the people, are now being exposed to even more torture.
Article 314 of the Lebanese criminal code defines terrorism as the act of causing a state of terror “by means of explosive devices, inflammable materials toxic or corrosive products. (…) that are liable to create a public emergency.”
It does literally describe the case of the Beirut Blast that, in plus, killed over 200 civilians and caused a terrorizing state of massive destruction and public emergency.
It does beg the question of why civilians are getting charged with terrorism by that particular law that is not being applied to those who destroyed half of Beirut and caused the terror of the Beirut Blast.
Instead, those suspected of having been involved are getting protected from prosecution by the law, just because they happen to have or have had political positions or are backed up by a political party or group.
