"A Lebanese pop star turned wanted Islamic militant handed himself over to the country's military intelligence service Saturday 12 years after going on the run, judicial and security officials said. Fadel Shaker had been on the run since the bloody street clashes between Sunni Muslim militants and the Lebanese army in June 2013 in the coastal city of Sidon. He was tried in absentia and sentenced to 22 years in prison in 2020 for providing support to a terrorist group."
"On Saturday night, a Lebanese military intelligence force reached one of the entrances of the Palestinian refugee camp of Ein el-Hilweh near Sidon and took Shaker, who had been hiding inside the camp for more than 12 years, into custody, two security and two judicial officials said. The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations, said the handover came after coordination between mediators and officials at the Lebanese Defense Ministry."
"The officials said that now that Shaker is being held by Lebanese authorities, the sentences that he received while on the run will be dropped and he will be questioned in preparation to stand trial on new charges of committing crimes against the military. Shaker had denied in the past playing any role in the clashes in Sidon and said he never advocated bloodshed."
Fadel Shaker, a former Lebanese pop star who became a wanted Islamic militant, surrendered to military intelligence after hiding in Ein el-Hilweh for more than 12 years. He fled following violent June 2013 clashes in Sidon between followers of Sheikh Ahmad al-Assir and the Lebanese army. Shaker was tried in absentia and sentenced in 2020 to 22 years for supporting a terrorist group; those sentences will be dropped now that he is in custody. Mediators and the Defense Ministry coordinated the handover. Shaker will be questioned and prepared to face new charges alleging crimes against the military.
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