United Against Corruption Alliance (Mouttahidoun): Jihad Al-Arab and His Associates Face Prosecution Pending Legal Proceedings

Persistent efforts by the United Alliance lawyers to hold Lebanon’s garbage mafia accountable seem to have started paying off. On March 27, 2025 and on Beirut’s Costa Brava landfill front, these efforts culminated in a ruling by the Indictment Chamber of Mount Lebanon, headed by Judge Rabih al-Hussami, to reject the procedural appeals of the defendants, the Council for Development and Reconstruction (CDR) and its president then, Nabil al-Jisr. Investigating Judge Nadim al-Nashif had also rejected earlier the procedural defenses of the defendants, Jihad al-Arab and his company, Al-Jihad for Commerce and Contracting (JCC). Bribes and pressure exerted by al-Arab and his associates had kept this Costa Brava landfill case file manipulated and concealed within the office of the First Investigating Judge and two other investigating judges for two years.

The Environmental Public Prosecutor in Mount Lebanon, Judge Fadi Malkoun, had filed an indictment proceeding against al-Arab and his company and al-Jisr and CDR. While the case seems to be on track before the Investigating Judge in Mount Lebanon, Roula Abdullah, the United Alliance's lawyers have been attending repeated trial hearings, the most recent of which was held yesterday, July 7, 2026. The Alliance refrains from delving into the hearing details until the relevant judicial decisions are issued.

In the context of the "waste mafia's" transgressions, the Alliance's lawyers are also pursuing criminal complaints related to environmental and financial crimes affecting public health and livelihoods, as well as public funds. Some of these complaints, filed against al-Arab and codefendants, have been suspiciously stalled before the Public Prosecutor's Office, despite the conclusive documentation and evidence. These cases, along with others pending before the Financial Public Prosecutor's Office (for which the lawyers have prepared new documentation), have seen bribes and pressure exerted by al-Arab and his associates, as was the case with Costa Brava’s, leading to serious judicial violations. Similar issues arose with the Tripoli and Minieh waste complaints, as well as with the Burj Hammoud-Bouchrieh landfill ones.

The founder of the Alliance, whistleblower and lawyer Rami Ollaik (maliciously disbarred under pressure from al-Arab and bank owners), and his team are working tirelessly before the judicial oversight authorities to ensure the law is applied, the complaints are put back on track, and the ongoing "environmental massacres" are brought to an end. They are continuing their relentless pursuit of said mafia until holding its members accountable in accordance with the proper procedures.