Judicial developments in Lebanon regarding a Syrian officer and political negotiations over Gaza in Cairo

The Lebanese Cassation Public Prosecutor, Judge Ahmed Rami Al-Hajj, decided to hand over Major General of the former Syrian regime, Adel Issa, who was arrested in Lebanon, to the Syrian authorities to be tried for the crimes charged against him, which he is accused of committing on Syrian territory.

The extradition decision was based on the “Lebanese-Syrian Judicial Agreement” signed in 1951, after the Lebanese judiciary deemed that the conditions for extradition were met in various legal and judicial aspects. Judge Al-Hajj assigned the Central Criminal Investigation Department to transfer Major General Adel Issa from the premises of the Palace of Justice in Beirut to the General Directorate of Public Security, in preparation for his extradition and transfer to the Lebanese-Syrian border, where he will be handed over to a Syrian security committee located on the Syrian side of the border.

On August 8, 2026, Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper reported from a Lebanese judicial source that the Cassation Public Prosecutor, Judge Ahmed Rami Al-Hajj, ordered Issa’s arrest pending investigation, and asked the Central Criminal Investigation Department to transfer him from the Syrian embassy to the premises of the Palace of Justice in Beirut, in conjunction with contacting the Syrian Public Prosecution to obtain the judicial file related to him.

According to the source, Issa underwent preliminary interrogation regarding his legal status and the accusations against him. He denied committing crimes while assuming his military duties, and said that he was supporting the Syrian intelligence service in some security missions. On the other hand, his family demanded his release, saying that he left Syria after his home was raided by an armed group.

The Lebanese judiciary kept Issa in detention awaiting the arrival of the Syrian file and studying the extent to which the extradition conditions apply to him, before later deciding to hand him over to the Syrian authorities based on the “Lebanese-Syrian Judicial Agreement” signed in 1951.

A report in Asharq Al-Awsat published on August 14 stated that the discriminatory public prosecutor in Lebanon, Judge Ahmed Rami Al-Hajj, issued an arrest warrant against the general in the former Syrian regime’s army, Adel Issa, against the backdrop of the charges under which he is being pursued in Syria. Including “committing massacres, murders and torture against Syrian civilians,” and based on the file requested for his recovery received from the Syrian authorities, at a time when the file had entered a decisive stage in preparation for a decision to be made regarding his extradition to Damascus, or keeping him before the Lebanese judiciary.

The interrogation of the officer took about two hours in Judge Al-Hajj’s office, in the presence of his representative, lawyer Tony Shadid, who represented him at the session after the presence of lawyer Moataz Saad al-Din, who was assigned by the “Alawite Islamic Council” in Lebanon to defend the officer in the former Syrian regime throughout the period of his being subject to judicial procedures in Lebanon, was unable to attend. At the conclusion of the session, Judge Al-Hajj issued a preliminary arrest warrant against Issa, based on the charges attributed to him by the Syrian judiciary.

A source from Hamas, and another from a Palestinian faction that participated in the recent Cairo negotiations, revealed some of the scenes surrounding the summit meeting between the American envoy, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and the High Representative of Gaza in the “Peace Council,” Nikolai Mladenov, and Council member, Tony Blair, with the leadership of the Palestinian movement, specifically Khalil Al-Hayya, Khaled Meshaal, Muhammad Darwish, and Ghazi Hamad.

The two sources said in separate statements to Asharq Al-Awsat that the Palestinian delegation held a meeting, on Saturday, with the Egyptian Minister of Intelligence, Hassan Rashad, and representatives of the mediating countries, which dealt with all issues related to the remainder of the first phase and the implementation of the second phase, and Israel’s lack of commitment to stop its violations of the ceasefire, and its failure to withdraw to the basic yellow line, and the humanitarian protocol that was supposed to be implemented previously.

The leading source in Hamas described the meeting with Kushner, Mladenov and Blair, in the presence of representatives of the mediating countries, as very good, pointing out that the American envoy congratulated the movement’s leadership on the elections that led to Khalil al-Hayya assuming the presidency of the political bureau.

The source revealed that Kushner asked Al-Hayda and the movement’s leaders a question about their future during and after the implementation of the fifteen-item “road map,” noting that the head of Hamas’ political bureau confirmed that his movement would exercise its natural right to political work, in addition to its involvement in social work.

A few days ago, Asharq Al-Awsat quoted sources from Hamas as saying that the movement’s leadership had received clear assurances, along with the factions, regarding its political future and that it would practice it freely without restrictions or prosecution of its members.

Al-Hayya stressed that Hamas has used weapons as a means to achieve the goals of the Palestinian people, so that there is a clear political solution to the Palestinian issue that leads to self-determination, indicating that this matter is also stipulated in President Trump’s plan, which was agreed upon in September 2025, before it was finally signed the following month, which led to a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

According to the source, Kushner praised Hamas’ positions and considered what it provided to its people to be very significant, noting that Trump welcomed the movement’s approval of the “road map” and called on Israel to stop its raids, while Al-Hayya explained to him that nothing had changed on the ground, and that the killing operations were continuing despite their decline, while there was a noticeable increase of about 120 new trucks entering the Gaza Strip, and that what the movement wanted was to find a horizon for a political solution. Stressing that negotiations will not be “opened again” on the terms of the map, and it will not be allowed to amend them.

Kushner asked the Hamas leadership to provide clarifications, which Israel conveyed to the American envoy’s team, about digging a tunnel in one of the areas near the Yellow Line, something Al-Hayya and the movement’s leaders denied. They confirmed that it was just a water well being dug to provide services to the population, stressing that his movement is not carrying out any military activities, and is fully committed to everything that was agreed upon.

In the presence of the mediators, the two teams ate food together, before another meeting was held with the head of the National Committee for Gaza Administration, Ali Shaath, and some members of the committee.

According to the Hamas source, Shaath assured Kushner that the National Committee’s priorities are reconstruction and providing aid to the population in the Gaza Strip, and asked him to convey a message to Trump that all Palestinians aspire to live in peace and without wars.

While Kushner assured Al-Hayda before leaving Cairo, that he would work forcefully in Israel in order for it to adhere to what was agreed upon.

Following the end of the meetings between the Hamas delegation, the American envoy, and Peace Council officials, the delegation met with the Palestinian factions on Monday evening, and presented them in the context of those meetings.

On Monday, Kushner met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who the Hebrew newspaper Israel Hayom reported blamed him for holding meetings with the leadership of the Hamas movement in Egypt.

According to an Israeli political official, there will not be any reconstruction in the Gaza Strip before it is disarmed, and that the process will be overseen by an American officer from the International Stabilization Force.

In an interview with a journalist on Fox News in Tel Aviv, Kushner said: “We may see progress within only about 30 days, with the start of withdrawing some of the weapons, as we hope, and perhaps also filling in some of the tunnels during the next 60 to 90 days.”

Kushner stressed that the United States “will not restrict Israel’s right to defend itself if there are any imminent threats in Gaza.”

Netanyahu demands that the Hamas movement completely disarm, including heavy and light weapons, something that the Peace Council has repeatedly confirmed.

A leadership source in Hamas told Asharq Al-Awsat that there is no change or change in the “Road Map” agreement, and this was confirmed by all parties, including Kushner, indicating that the “Peace Council” clarified that what is meant is that Israel is not required to carry out any withdrawal from the main yellow line before the process of inventorying and storing weapons begins, while it is forced to withdraw from the areas where it expanded its presence after the recent expansion of the yellow line.

The source stated that the agreement is clear in its text, and anything less than that is merely wordplay to serve Netanyahu politically in light of the approaching elections.

Meanwhile, Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem confirmed to Agence France-Presse on Tuesday that the movement was fully committed to the agreement, after the Kushner-Netanyahu discussions, saying: “Hamas is committed to this path that was agreed upon,” adding: “It is clear that the occupation has not yet given the mediators clear approval of the road map... There are timetables and procedural steps that need detailing, but there must be approval from the occupation on the road map.”