2005 press releases

U.S. Embassy Condemns Murder of Member of Parliament Gibran Tueni

December 12, 2005

The Embassy of the United States of America condemns in the strongest terms the barbaric attack on Member of Parliament Gibran Tueni, Publisher, Chairman of the Board, General Manager and editorialist of An Nahar. With this heinous act, the forces of oppression and tyranny have taken from the Lebanese people one of their greatest champions for liberty and freedom and have killed a courageous advocate of Lebanese independence and sovereignty.

Following in the footsteps of his grandfather and father, Gibran Tueni continued the family tradition of using the written word to advance the Lebanese people’s right to live in dignity. On the front page of An Nahar he wrote boldly calling on the Syrian regime to let the Lebanese people live free of Syrian interference. And he applied these brave words with his political activism in the Cornet Chehwan and Bristol gatherings and in the historic March 14 demonstration. As a Member of Parliament in Lebanon’s first “Made in Lebanon” government in decades, Gibran Tueni embodied the triumph of democracy over political intimidation by outsiders. His voice in the Parliament elevated Lebanon as a true member in the community of democracies.

Those who killed Gibran Tueni and the other innocents in this heinous attack seek, once again, to impede Lebanon’s steady progress towards full independence and sovereignty. These cowardly attackers attempt to shake the confidence of the Lebanese people in the courageous steps they have taken towards freedom and democracy. The United States stands firmly with the Lebanese people in repudiating such acts of terror and violence. The United States underscores its support for the Government of Lebanon as it works to reaffirm Lebanon’s sovereignty, engage in vital reforms and strengthen Lebanon’s democratic institutions.

The U.S. Embassy offers its deepest condolences to the Tueni and An Nahar families and to the families of all the victims.