Everyone's support needed in Kassir case three months after his murder

Noting that three months have gone by since journalist Samir Kassir was blown up in Beirut, Reporters Without Borders today reiterated the need for all parties to actively support and assist in solving the case. "We once again call on the Lebanese authorities to cooperate fully with the French investigative team, consisting of examining magistrates Jean-Louis Bruguière et Philippe Coirre," said the press freedom organisation, which is formally registered as an interested party in the legal proceedings. Reporters Without Borders added: "Lebanon's judicial investigators must also step up their own enquiries so that this horrible crime does not remain unpunished. We want this investigation to be concluded as quickly as possible with both perpetrators and instigators being exposed and brought to justice." Kassir was killed when a bomb planted in his white Alfa Romeo car exploded on the morning of 2 June outside his home in the Christian neighbourhood of Achrafieh in East Beirut, A writer and historian with both French and Lebanese citizenship, 45-year-old Kassir had been writing columns for the past 10 years for An-Nahar ("The Day" in Arabic), a moderate daily newspaper with a circulation of 55,000. He was the correspondent of the French-language international television station TV5 and had written for many years for the French monthly Le Monde Diplomatique. He was also professor of political sciences at Beirut's St. Joseph university. Well-known for his anti-Syrian positions and his criticism of the "Lebanese police state," he had been harassed and threatened for years. In 2000, he was harassed by Lebanese state security police and his Lebanese passport was confiscated. He later said he was constantly followed by Lebanese and Syrian intelligence agents. Former prime minister Rafik Hariri had given him protection at that time. His last column, on 27 May, was headlined "Gaffe after gaffe" and criticised "the continuing repression in Syria." Kassir was also one of the founders of the opposition Movement of the Democratic Left and was an active participant in the anti-Syrian protests in the spring of this year.