Postponement of Fadl Shaker and Sheikh Ahmed Al-Asir’s Trial to January 9

Reason for Postponement: Incomplete Litigation and Failure to Notify Some Defendants of the Hearing Date

The Criminal Court in Lebanon has decided to postpone the trial of artist Fadl Shaker, Sheikh Ahmed Al-Asir, and four other defendants in the case of the attempted assassination of Resistance Brigades official Hilal Hammoud in Sidon in 2013, until January 9, according to the National News Agency.

Lebanese media outlets explained that the postponement was due to incomplete litigation and the failure to notify some of the defendants of the hearing date, with a later date to be set for resuming the trial.

In a related context, the military court had set Tuesday, November 25, as the start date for Shaker’s trial in four lawsuits concerning membership in and funding of an armed group (Ahmed Al-Asir’s faction), possession of unlicensed weapons, and undermining state authority and prestige.

Fadl Shaker had surrendered to the Lebanese army on October 5 at the entrance of Ain El-Helweh camp, following the 2013 Abra events, which witnessed violent clashes between Ahmed Al-Asir’s supporters and the Lebanese army. The clashes resulted in the deaths of 18 soldiers and 11 militants, before the army took control of the complex that Al-Asir and his supporters, including Shaker, had used as a headquarters. Shaker then hid in Ain El-Helweh camp for several years.

Fadl Shaker in Brief Fadl Shaker, born in Sidon in 1969 to a Lebanese father and a Palestinian mother, is considered one of the most prominent Arab singers of his generation. He gained fame for his romantic songs before announcing his retirement from music in 2012. In 2020, two absentia judgments were issued against him by the military court: the first sentenced him to 15 years of hard labor, and the second to seven years with a financial fine. Shaker, through his lawyer, affirmed his innocence of these charges, asserting that he did not participate in firing at the army during the Abra events.

Despite his legal background, Shaker has recently returned to the music scene with new works, including the song "Keefak A Firaqi" ("How Are You in My Absence"), which has gained wide popularity among his audience.