Lebanese officer gets 20 years for spying for Israel

Diab, who is first officer to be charged by Lebanese court for espionage on Israel's behalf, gave military, civilian information to Israel.

By JPOST.COM STAFF
Hebrew Spy Equipment 311 (photo credit: LAF Website)
Hebrew Spy Equipment 311
(photo credit: LAF Website)
The Lebanese Military Court sentenced on Friday a senior Lebanese officer who was convicted of spying for Israel to 20 years in prison, Channel 10 News reported. Mansour Diab's sentence marks the first time a Lebanese officer was convicted of spying for Israel
Diab, whose rank corresponds to an IDF colonel, already served prison time on charges of "collaborating with Israeli intelligence." The prosecution proved that Diab provided Israel with information on civilian and military areas in Lebanon using an mp3 device sent to him by Israeli intelligence agents, UPI in Arabic reported.
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The officer was stripped of all his civil rights, however the colonel may still appeal the verdict to the Military Court of Appeals.
According to Channel 10, Diab told the court that he did not know who had contacted him regarding the espionage operation. He said that he had received a telephone call from Israelis telling him to retrieve a recording device waiting for him in the country's south. When he arrived, he found the item in a plastic box.
Since the 2006 Second Lebanon War, Lebanese officials have compiled a list of nearly 150 cases of espionage. In June 2010, the list was used as a Lebanese complaint about Israel presented to the UN Security Council. Channel 10 said that at least 100 people have been arrested for spying on Israel's behalf.