STATEMENT BY SECRETARY ANTONY J. BLINKEN
February 4, 2021
Assassination of Lebanese Activist Lokman Slim
The United States condemns the heinous assassination of prominent Lebanese activist Lokman Slim in Southern Lebanon.
We join the international community in calling for his killers to be brought to swift justice.
Mr. Slim devoted his life to bringing about positive change in Lebanon and bravely pushed for justice, accountability, and rule of law in his country. It is cowardly and unacceptable to resort to violence, threats, and intimidation as a means of subverting the rule of law or suppressing freedom of expression and civic activism. We urge Lebanese officials, including the judiciary and political leaders, to hold accountable those who commit such barbaric acts without delay or exception.
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Statement by Ambassador Dorothy C. Shea
on the Assassination of Lokman Slim
I want to begin by conveying my sincere condolences to the family of Lokman Slim, and all of those who are impacted by the tragic news of his death, a barbaric assassination.
Lokman Slim publicly and privately acknowledged that there were threats being made against his life, and yet he bravely continued to push for justice, accountability, and the rule of law in Lebanon.
May he rest in peace.
This assassination was not just a brutal assault on an individual, but a cowardly attack on the principles of democracy, freedom of expression, and civic participation.
It is also an attack on Lebanon itself.
The use of threats and intimidation as a means to subvert the rule of law and silence political discourse is unacceptable.
We join other friends of Lebanon and the country’s leaders who have already condemned this horrific murder and call on leaders across the political spectrum to do the same.
We also emphasize the need for an expeditious investigation of this and other recent unresolved killings so that the perpetrators of these acts are brought to justice.
In a country that so desperately needs to recover from the multiple crises it faces, political assassinations send exactly the wrong signal to the world about what Lebanon stands for.
May the rule of law and accountability, the very principles for which Lokman Slim was fighting, prevail.