Around 4500 people arrived at Lannemezan prison in France on Saturday to call for the release of Georges Ibrahim Abdallah, a Lebanese terrorist responsible for the killing of an Israeli diplomat.
Abdallah, a Lebanese terrorist and member of the PLFP, was arrested in France on October 24, 1984, and sentenced to life imprisonment for complicity in the execution of two diplomats, one of whom was Israeli and the other, a US military attaché. He has been in prison for 40 years this year
The Israeli, Yaakov Bar Simantov, was shot in front of his children.
A protest calling for Abdallah's release has been held every year for fifteen years. This year, the protest was organized by Collectif Palestine Vaincra [the Palestinian collective will win], Secours Rouge [Red Aid], Samidoun and the Fédération Syndicale Étudiante [Student Trade Union Federation].
The different groups have come together to form the United Campaign for the Release of Georges Abdallah.
The Student Trade Union brought approximately 70 students from various French states, including Lille, Limoges, Nanterre, Strasbourg and Rennes, arriving on coaches to the prison.
Samidoun's branch in the Basque autonomous region of Spain also organized coaches to the prison, and separate protests were held on the streets of Italy, France, Switzerland and Belgium organized by the Secours Rouge, a Communist organization.
Politicians join the masses
French politician Andrée Taurinya, with the France Insoumise party, attended the rally in support of Abdallah's release. Taurinya wrote on her X account that she attended the rally to "oppose the slow death sentence inflicted on comrade Georges Ibrahim Abdallah," whom she added is the "oldest political prisoner in Europe" at 73.
Taurinya was responsible for writing and organizing an open letter calling for Abdallah's release in June, which was signed by multiple key French voices.
In total, over 130 organizations and personalities from France signed an appeal launched by the Campagne Unitaire for an international month of action, to occur after the massive demonstration outside Lannemezan prison.
According to Collectif Palestine Vaincra, 200 people took part in a meeting in Toulouse on Friday to demand Abdallah's release.
They were supported by Abdallah's brother, Robert, and his lawyer, Jean-Louis Chalanset. The meeting also called for solidarity "with the resistance of the Palestinian and Lebanese [...] following the atrocities committed by the Zionist state."
According to the protest groups, Abdallah is set to receive a new sentence on 15 November this year. While some protesters hope he will be released, his lawyer said, according to La Haine, that “He continues to claim to be a communist, and psychiatrists consider it a pathology."