Lebanese journalist Antoine Bassil on Wednesday retracted statements he had made in the past concerning his alleged collaboration with Israel, denying holding meetings with top Israeli officials.
The retraction came during Bassil’s interrogation at a military tribunal, led by Brigadier Maher Safieddine, which was looking into the case of a number of people accused of collaborating with Israel, forming an association to undermine state authority and prestige and disturbing Lebanon’s ties with Syria, The Daily Star reports.
Bassil denied knowing any person by the name of Oded Zarai, described as an aide to the coordinator of Israeli activities in Lebanon, Uri Lubrani. However, he admitted knowing someone named Zaarour, who was actually Zarai, while he worked in the early 1980s with the Phalange-owned Al-Aamal newspaper. Zaarour was introduced to him as an Iraqi Jew.
Bassil added that until his detention in August, he was unaware that Zaarour was Israeli.
Bassil told the tribunal that he entered Israel three times, first in 1981 when he was sent by Al-Aamal editor-in-chief Joseph Abu Khalil to conduct a field investigation on Israel’s “security zone.” The second time was in 1983 to cover Israeli elections for the paper, and the third in 1986 on another journalistic assignment.
Bassil denied that he knew Lubrani, saying: “I know nothing about him except what I hear in the news and press reports,” the Lebanese daily reported.
Bassil refused to confirm his previous confession that he had met at one time with LF leader Samir Geagea and other LF officials who tasked him to meet Lubrani in Israel.
However, he said that in 1996 he met with Zaarour in Cyprus. Additionally, he denied having told Journalists Union president Melhem Karam that he had connections with Israel. (Albawaba.com)
