The Lebanese judiciary ordered yesterday the arrest of the wife and daughter of Duraid Rifaat Al-Assad after it was revealed that they were carrying forged passports. Both are currently detained by the Lebanese General Security.

The detainees were referred to the Public Prosecution, which issued the arrest warrant, noting that the wife and daughter were accompanied by Rifaat Al-Assad’s son, who holds a legitimate Syrian passport. The group was heading to Cairo via the airport.

Reports indicated that the passports confiscated from Rifaat Al-Assad’s wife and daughter were Syrian, not Lebanese. Duraid Al-Assad has played a leading role alongside the regime in suppressing opposition of all forms, employing sectarian incitement to consolidate the ranks of the Alawite sect in support of Bashar Al-Assad’s regime.

Additionally, Lebanon recently received an American Interpol notice requesting the arrest of former Syrian Air Force Intelligence Chief Major General Jamil Hassan. Sources confirmed that the notice was handed to Prosecutor General Judge Jamal Al-Hajjar last Thursday, who immediately circulated it to all security agencies and border authorities.

Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati announced on Monday that Lebanon would cooperate with Interpol’s request to apprehend Hassan, whom U.S. authorities accuse of committing war crimes during the era of the deposed Bashar Al-Assad regime.

Mikati told Reuters: “We are committed to cooperating with the Interpol notice regarding the arrest of the former head of Syrian Air Force Intelligence, as we consistently cooperate in all matters related to the international system.”

What happened at the airport is considered normal in functional states, according to sovereign political sources who spoke to Al-Markazia. However, in a country like Lebanon, it is an extraordinary occurrence—perhaps even an achievement—given how rarely the state takes sovereign decisions with such boldness if one might put it that way.

According to the sources, this step follows a period during which dozens of figures linked to the deposed Syrian regime, including members of the Al-Assad family, departed Lebanon through its borders after the Syrian uprising began. These departures prompted several major capitals, as well as the new Syrian authorities, to send strong messages to Lebanon urging it to curb this leniency. They emphasized the need for Lebanon to align quickly with international law by confronting and detaining these individuals, especially as many of them are subject to international arrest warrants. Failure to comply, they warned, would expose Lebanon to accountability for disregarding international legitimacy.

It appears that this warning was heeded, with the detention of Duraid Rifaat Al-Assad’s wife and daughter serving as the first tangible outcome—a point in favor of the Lebanese state.

Let us hope such measures become more frequent, for a delayed awakening is better than none at all.