Summary: Fadl Shaker is being tried in four separate security cases, in which prior absentee sentences ranged from five years to 15 years with hard labor. The Lebanese judiciary has approved his release on bail in all four cases.

The Lebanese judiciary on Wednesday approved the release of artist Fadl Shaker in four cases filed against him in exchange for a financial bail, according to a judicial source who spoke to AFP, nine months after his arrest.

Shaker is being tried in four separate security cases, in which prior absentee sentences ranged from five years to 15 years with hard labor.

Journalist specialized in judicial affairs Farah Mansour said in an audio interview with Independent Arabia that the military court had heard the testimony of the doctor who examined artist Fadl Shaker in recent days, after he suffered a health condition that required his transfer to the military hospital, where he underwent a number of medical tests. Following this testimony, the military court panel studied the file and decided today, at 2 p.m., unanimously, to release artist Fadl Shaker and set him free.

She added, 'Shaker will undertake to attend all his trial sessions before the military court in the four cases in which he is being prosecuted. The court also decided to ban him from traveling outside Lebanese territory until the final verdict is issued in his case. It is expected that he will be released within the next few hours after completing all legal procedures, foremost of which is paying the financial bail set by the court.'

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Mansour revealed that the court set a bail of 100 million Lebanese pounds for each of the files in which he is being prosecuted before the military court, while in the Abra file it set a bail of 200 million Lebanese pounds, bringing the total bail amount owed to about 500 million Lebanese pounds.

While this amount is expected to be secured and all necessary legal procedures completed, including referring the court's decision to the government commissioner before the military court, Judge Claude Ghannam, to decide definitively on the release order, either by approving the panel's decision or appealing it, all indications suggest that artist Fadl Shaker will be released this evening.

She concluded, 'The data indicate that the case has entered a different and positive phase in Shaker's favor, especially after the testimonies previously given before the military court, foremost among which were testimonies from officers confirming that he did not participate in the Abra events and did not fire any bullet at members of the Lebanese army. Accordingly, the groundwork is now laid for his release, and he is expected to regain his freedom within the next few hours.'