A U.S. federal court has found the Iranian regime liable for its role in the detention and torture of Amer Fakhoury, a Lebanese American citizen who was arrested in Lebanon in 2019. The ruling comes after nearly four years of legal pursuit by the Fakhoury family.
The Fakhoury family stated that the Iranian regime was involved in their father’s arrest through its proxy group, Hezbollah in Lebanon. This is the first time a U.S. court has officially recognized such a connection.
Amer Fakhoury, who once served in the army in southern Lebanon, was arrested during a trip to the country in September 2019 and faced serious charges. He returned to the U.S. in March 2020 after being acquitted by Lebanon’s Supreme Court but died in September of that year due to cancer and complications stemming from his detention.
The Fakhoury family expressed appreciation for the court’s decision, stating that the ruling could pave the way for legal action on behalf of other citizens who have faced pressure or detention in Lebanon.
They also called for sanctions against Lebanese officials whom they claim have collaborated with Hezbollah and the Iranian regime.
Hezbollah supporters have repeatedly engaged in violence and suppression of citizens in Lebanon over the past years.
Three years ago, Dima Sadek, a Lebanese Shiite journalist critical of Hezbollah, received threats of sexual assault and murder after condemning the attack on Salman Rushdie.
At the time, an unnamed Hezbollah official told Reuters that the group had no knowledge of the attack on Salman Rushdie by a man of Lebanese descent (Hadi Matar) and therefore could not comment.
Meanwhile, Hezbollah supporters on social media referred to the attack as a “sacred stabbing” and described the assailant as “brave” and a “hero.”
