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<div><b><span
style="font-size:10pt;line-height:107%;font-family:Arial,sans-serif">PRESS
RELEASE<br>
<br>
For Immediate Release<br>
<br>
French Investigative Judges Dismiss Allegations;
Dr. Hassan Diab Set to be Released
from Prison in France<br>
<br>
<span
class="gmail-m_5709185176590271218gmail-aBn"><span
class="gmail-m_5709185176590271218gmail-aQJ">12
January 2018</span></span>, Ottawa –</span></b><span
style="font-size:10pt;line-height:107%;font-family:Arial,sans-serif">
Today, Judges Jean-Marc Herbaut and Richard
Foltzer (<i>“Juges d’instruction anti-terroristes”</i>)
dismissed the allegations against Dr. Hassan Diab
and ordered his immediate
release from detention. An overwhelming body of
evidence shows Dr. Diab cannot
have been in France in 1980 when the attack was
perpetrated, as many elements
confirm he was in Beirut during that period of
time. The decision also notably
underlines the numerous contradictions and
misstatements contained in the
intelligence which cast serious doubts about their
reliability, as well as the
fact that Dr. Diab’s handwriting, fingerprints,
palm prints, physical
description, and age do not match those of the
suspect identified in 1980.<br>
<br>
After more than three years in solitary
confinement in a French prison, Dr.
Diab is set to be released from detention today.<br>
<br>
Dr. Diab’s lawyers in France, William Bourdon,
Apolline Cagnat, and Amélie
Lefebvre, stated that “This decision in such a
serious terrorism case is
exceptional. It must remind us that the
acknowledgement of a suspect’s
innocence in a terrorism case is always a long
road but can be obtained with
relentless work. The decision is founded on the
demonstration of the
impossibility to attribute to Hassan Diab any
responsibility in the attack, as
we have not ceased to claim. The respect owed to
the victims and their
legitimate need for justice must not be confused
with the prosecutor’s obstinacy
whose potential appeal would be completely
contrary to the law and facts.”<br>
<br>
Don Bayne, Dr. Diab’s lawyer in Canada, remarked,
“We're elated, relieved and
thankful. Thankful to the French judges for their
wisdom and courage to buck
political and social pressure to make a completely
just decision, something
that we believe the courts in Canada failed to do
at every level. Thankful that
Dr. Diab's wife, Rania Tfaily, led the fight for
justice with such dignity and
perseverance. Thankful to Minister Freeland, Sam
Moyer, Maria Lamani, and
others at Global Affairs Canada for their genuine
and impressive support to a
Canadian who never should have been extradited.
And thankful for the efforts of
the wonderful Canadians who make up the Hassan
Diab Support Committee. We would
add this - now is the time for the Justice
Minister, indeed the Prime Minister,
to order a complete review of the Extradition Act
and procedures that led to
years of injustice for an innocent Canadian. How
could Canada have extradited a
Canadian to France when France never, never had a
case against Dr. Diab fit to
go to trial? How? Because of Canada's Extradition
Act, of the procedures it
enables to strip Canadians of liberty unjustly.
This Canadian was extradited on
overwhelmingly unreliable evidence yet every
Canadian court allowed this to
happen. So while we are thankful and relieved that
justice has been served, we
must ensure the system is corrected so that no
other Canadian experiences what
Dr. Diab has.”<br>
<br>
<b>Background<br>
</b><br>
Dr. Hassan Diab is a Canadian citizen and
sociology professor who lived in
Ottawa. He was extradited from Canada to France in
November 2014 even though
the Canadian extradition judge Robert Maranger
described the evidence presented
against Dr. Hassan Diab as “very problematic”,
“convoluted”, “illogical”, and
“suspect”. However, given the low threshold of
evidence in Canada’s extradition
law, the judge felt compelled to order Hassan
Diab's extradition in November
2014.<br>
<br>
Four French judges have ordered Dr. Diab’s
conditional release eight times in
the last 20 months, most recently in November
2017. However, each time the
Paris prosecutor appealed, and the French Court of
Appeal overturned the
release orders due to the political climate in
France.<br>
<br>
Dr. Diab has a lifelong record of opposition to
bigotry and discrimination, as
attested by family, long-time friends, and
colleagues. He has always maintained his
innocence and
strongly condemned the 1980 crime. He has
unequivocally stated that “my life
has been turned upside down because of unfounded
allegations and suspicions. I
am innocent of the accusations against me. I have
never engaged in terrorism. I
have never participated in any terrorist attacks.
I am not an anti-Semite.”<br>
<br>
Dr. Diab has the support of thousands of
individuals and organisations in
Canada and around the world.<br>
<br>
<br>
<b>For more information:<br>
</b><br>
Roger Clark<br>
Hassan Diab Support Committee<br>
<a href="tel:%28613%29%20355-2623"
value="+16133552623" target="_blank"
moz-do-not-send="true">(613) 355-2623</a><br>
<a href="mailto:diabsupport@gmail.com"
target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true">diabsupport@gmail.com</a><br>
<a href="http://www.justiceforhassandiab.org/"
target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true">http://www.justiceforhassandia<wbr>b.org</a>
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