Lebanon awakened yesterday to the news of the arrest by security forces of the Iraqi young man, Abdullah Yasser Sabawi al-Hassan, grandson of Sabawi Ibrahim al-Hassan, the half-brother of the late Iraqi President Saddam Hussein from his mother. This arrest was based on an Interpol warrant issued at the request of the Iraqi judicial authorities. The details of this arrest, which took place on June 11, emerged through a video clip circulated by Saad Sabawi Ibrahim al-Hassan, Saddam Hussein's nephew, through social media, in which he announced Abdullah's arrest and appealed to Arab and international organizations concerned with human rights to "intervene to know the fate of his nephew, Abdullah Yasser Sabawi al-Hassan, detained by Lebanese security authorities since last June" on "malicious" charges, according to him.
The Lebanese response to this news was swift, as the Director-General of General Security, Major General Abbas Ibrahim, confirmed in an interview with an Iraqi news station that the General Directorate of General Security "managed to arrest the individual wanted by Iraqi justice, Abdullah Yasser Sabawi al-Hassan, due to accusations of committing criminal acts that have resulted in the deaths of thousands of innocent people, based on an international Interpol warrant executed by competent Lebanese security forces." Ibrahim added, "We operate under the framework of international law and the judiciary and the extradition requests between states, especially as it is a brotherly country like Iraq, and we, in turn, refuse any impunity while applying the law, without any interference or pressure, as this is our duty towards our people in Iraq."
In an attempt to refute the accusations against this detainee, Saad Sabawi Ibrahim al-Hassan announced that his nephew "left Iraq in 2003 at the age of 8 and has never returned, not even for a visit, due to various reasons, the most important being his deprivation of Iraqi citizenship and all the rights of citizenship in his country." He said, "He was accompanying us during our stay in Yemen until we decided to leave Yemen due to the security situation there in recent years," revealing that "Abdullah Yasser al-Hassan chose to settle in Lebanon, and upon his arrival, he was keen to file a protection request with the United Nations and received approval, in addition to holding citizenship from another country besides Iraq." He continued that his nephew "lived in Lebanon for four years without facing any harassment, and his life was quiet without any security or political incidents."
It appears that the decision to arrest him was not made solely by General Security but was implemented in accordance with a judicial order. An informed source in the Public Prosecution told "Asharq Al-Awsat" that the distinguished public prosecutor, Judge Ghassan Oueidat, received an Iraqi arrest warrant circulated through Interpol requesting the arrest of this individual when found. The source stated, "Upon discovering that the wanted individual was in Lebanon, he was arrested, and the Iraqi authorities were informed of the execution of the warrant, and he remained in custody for a specified period, after which Judge Oueidat ordered his release on bail and handed him over to General Security to assess the legality of his residency in Lebanon or his deportation."
The source admitted that this young man "is currently in custody with General Security awaiting deportation, and the authorities in Iraq and Yemen have requested his extradition," pointing out that the decision "is in the hands of Major General Abbas Ibrahim, who will take the appropriate action." The source emphasized that the individual "is no longer a matter for the judiciary, and the decision now lies with the General Director of General Security, who decides whether to renew his residency in Lebanese territory or deport him to Iraq or Yemen, and this is an administrative security matter entrusted to the General Security apparatus and its head."
The detained young man's family fears for his life if he is deported to Iraq, and Saad Sabawi al-Hassan renewed his appeal to international organizations to "work on freeing his nephew," considering that "the crimes he is accused of are malicious and have no rational basis, and neither religion nor customs would accept them." He stated, "I appeal to those with a living conscience in various parts of the world, and I call upon them in the name of humanity, religions, customs, and noble Arab morals: stop the extradition of my nephew Abdullah."
