Representative Major General Ashraf Rifi issued the following statement: “I called my friend, the artist Fadel Shaker, to congratulate him on regaining his freedom, after many years of suffering, which I believe resulted from a judicial and security process that did not achieve objective justice. Large groups of Lebanese and residents of Lebanon, especially members of the Sunni sect, have paid heavy prices as a result of the failure to implement justice and the politicization of some files, while others have remained immune from accountability. I condemn everyone who contributed to issuing rulings that I consider unjust, and I salute the brave judges who championed the truth and the law, and proved that an independent judiciary is the basic foundation of justice and the establishment of the state. My tribute to my friend Fadel Shaker is also a tribute to everyone who felt that he was wronged, and to everyone who waited years to obtain his right to a fair trial and fair justice. I also extend my greetings to His Excellency the President of the Republic, the Prime Minister, and the government, for what raises hope for the restoration of respect for the state of law and institutions, and for the opening of a new page in which the prestige and independence of the judiciary is restored. I hope that the adoption of the general amnesty law, after responsible and fair study, will constitute a step towards addressing the outstanding issues, getting justice for everyone who deserves justice, and turning a page that has burdened Lebanon in light of a stage in which the Iranian project and its arms dominated the national decision, weakened state institutions, and harmed the concept of justice and the rule of law. He concluded: “Lebanon can only rise with one state, one weapon, an independent judiciary, and justice applied to everyone without exception or selectivity. This is the only guarantee for restoring the Lebanese people’s confidence in their state and in the future of their country.”