Dany Chamoun and family case
In 1995, Sidon-born Judge Hassan Kawas sat on Lebanon's Justice Council during the Dany Chamoun family assassination case. The court convicted Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea of inciting the killing and sentenced him to death, later reduced to life imprisonment.
Kawas's role was judicial: he was one of the five judges who issued and signed the final ruling. The case should be described as historically important and controversial, with criticism from Amnesty International concerning the trial process.
Rashid Karami assassination case
After leaving the bench, Hassan Kawas reappeared in a second major case involving Samir Geagea: the 1987 assassination of Prime Minister Rashid Karami, who was killed by a bomb aboard a Lebanese Army helicopter.
In the later Justice Council trial, Kawas represented the personal-claimant side for the Karami family and questioned witnesses. His role had shifted from judge to legal advocate in one of Lebanon's most sensitive post-war trials.
Sources and context
- Justice Council judges in the Dany Chamoun caseAs-Safir · 1995-06-24 · Contemporary press profile
Includes the biographical profile used for the chronology of Kawas’s education and judicial appointments.
- Report on the Dany Chamoun case rulingAs-Safir · Court reporting
Press coverage of the Justice Council ruling. Historical trial reporting is identified as reporting rather than a new finding by this archive.
- Rashid Karami assassination trial reportAs-Safir · Court reporting
Documents the trial context for Kawas’s later role as a legal advocate.
- Witness questioning in the Karami trialAs-Safir · Court reporting
Supports the distinction between Kawas’s earlier judicial service and his subsequent work for the personal-claimant side.
Compiled by Judge Hassan Kawas Archive. Updated . How we use sources.
