Tuesday, 27 January 2015

Lebanon Press Federation head fined over defaming FPM leader, former security chief


BEIRUT: Lebanon's newly elected Press Federation chief Aouni al-Kaaki was ordered Tuesday to pay compensation to former General Security head Jamil al-Sayyed, and MP Michel Aoun in separate libel cases.


The Court of Criminal Appeals found Kaaki, who is also editor-in-chief of As-Sharq newspaper, guilty of publishing content that defames Sayyed, and ordered him to pay LL6 million ($3,972) in compensation to the former security chief, Sayyed's office said in a statement.


Kaaki was fined an additional LL500,000 to be paid to the state in indemnities, and was ordered to publish the court’s verdict in his newspaper, after losing the appeal.


A judicial source confirmed the ruling to The Daily Star.


Separately Tuesday, Kaaki was ordered by the Beirut Publication Court to pay LL10 million for slandering Michel Aoun in an article published on April 14, 2010 in the same newspaper, the source said.


He will also have to pay an additional LL6 million to the state in indemnities.


The author of the article, Mirvat Sioufi, was ordered to pay the same amounts.


Kaaki and Sioufi can appeal the verdict in the Aoun case. If they appeal the verdict, the case could be forwarded to the Court of Criminal Appeals.


Kaaki was elected earlier this month as the head of the Lebanese Press Federation.



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