Confessed Killer of Rafik Hariri Released From Prison
▻http://english.al-akhbar.com/content/confessed-killer-rafik-hariri-released-prison
Akbar confessed his involvement in the assassination of Hariri to investigators, disclosing information that would later turn out to be accurate. However, on the next day, Akbar retracted his statement, after a six-hour meeting with Samir Shehadeh and Wissam al-Hassan.
When the rest of the cell appeared before the head of the military tribunal, Nizar Khalil, they all retracted their previous statements, which they claimed had been extracted under torture. The suspects accused the Information Branch of fabricating their statements, while Akbar denied any involvement in Hariri’s assassination.
The issue of whether Nabaa and Akbar had anything to do with Hariri’s murder became the focus of much controversy. What is certain is that the cell actively supported fighters in Iraq.