Running a local lodge in his village, El Qaa, ex-military man named Elias Daher has been arrested by Lebanese authorities for "drugging and raping" around 20 kids, both males, and females.
Residents of El Qaa village to the north of Lebanon have heavily weighed on the news, after the arrest of Elias Daher, a former military member who currently runs the L' Kaa Country Lodge.
لم أرغب بالكشف عن الجهة التي تحمي المغتصب، الرتيب المتقاعد الياس ضاهر، وهي التيار العوني بشخص أحد النواب والكهنة كي لا يتم تسييس الموضوع، لكن هؤلاء بذبابهم الالكتروني يصرّون على تبني الجريمة والدفاع عن مرتكبها، عجيب أمركم، ما في خجل ولا أخلاق.
— Ahmad M. Yassine | أحمد م. ياسين (@Lobnene_Blog) July 5, 2022
Translation: "I didn't want to name the political power that has been protecting the rapist, the former military rank Elias Daher, which is the Aounists through one of the MPs and religious figures, so the case doesn't turn political. But their bots insist on defending the crime and its perpetrator. How shameless can you be?"
Online people expressed both shock and relief over the arrest of Elias Daher, who is said to have drugged 20 kids in the village over the years, before taking sexual advantages of them.
Social media users stressed the importance of naming Daher as the main suspect in the case, despite the lack of official reports by government sources, saying accusations against him have been raised for years but ignored by officials, referring to his strong ties with the ruling political party in Lebanon, The Free Patriotic Movement, founded by the current President of Lebanon Michel Aoun.
الياس ضاهر هو العسكري المتقاعد الذي خدّر واغتصب وصوّر الأطفال!
النائب سامر التوم (تيار وطني حرّ) عم يتستّر على مغتصب 20 طفل/طفلة.
بلد الشياطين، افضحوهم بالاسامي..! #سفاح_الاطفال— Samia Khaddaj (@samiakhaddaj) July 5, 2022
Translation: "Elias Daher is the retired military personnel who drugged and raped kids. MP Samer Al Toum of the Free Patriotic Movement has been covering up for the rapist of 20 male and female kids. This is a country of devils. Expose their names."
Sharing his photo and name, Lebanese online commentators wished that the growing public outrage would no longer "protect Elias Daher or other people who exploit their political power to commit such crimes".
The Lebanese daily newspaper Al Akhbar published a news report referring to the arrest and the accusations, mentioning the suspect's initials as E.D and adding that he is 50-something years old.
I don’t know what's more sickening, the rapes, the town that kept silent or security forces that turned blind eye. #EliasDaher, retired soldier & known trafficker drugged & raped 20 children of both sexes 4 more than 3 yrs in AlQaa. #سفاح_الاطفال #لبنان #بس_هيك #عهد_العهر #القاع
— Joyce (@JoyceJ010) July 6, 2022
According to Al Akhbar, a young boy woke up in the lodge to find himself naked. He ran to his house and told his parents, who consequently reported the accused to the police. Initial police reports point to nearly 17 other victims of the same person so far.
