Court rules in favour of Al Rai in lawsuit filed by Dahabi

AMMAN — The Amman Court of First Instance on Monday ruled in favour of Al Rai Arabic daily in a lawsuit filed against it by former General Intelligence Department (GID) chief Mohammed Dahabi.

The newspaper said the court ruled that former Al Rai editor-in-chief Abdulmajid Asfour and journalists Ghazi Mrayat and Abdularazaq Abu Hazim were not guilty.

In an appealable verdict, the court decided to dismiss the claim filed by Dahabi in which he demanded JD10 million as compensation for what he argued was an insult against his person when Al Rai reported that he had abused his office by bringing money into the Kingdom using planes and vehicles.

Dahabi, who headed the GID between 2005 and 2008, was found guilty in 2012 of embezzlement, money laundering and exploitation of public office.

In November 2012, the Amman Criminal Court sentenced Dahabi to 13 years and three months in prison and seized around JD24 million of his assets. 

The court also ruled that the former GID head pay a fine of JD21 million. 

The ruling was upheld by the Cassation Court.