The government is mired in confusion and neglect

Since the beginning of the crisis, which appeared in the form of leaks to the media, only an orphan report has been released by the Internal Security Forces, which talks about its procedures. The official story is largely absent, which has opened the public’s appetite for spreading false and misleading information, while the Ministries of Interior and Justice responsible for following up on the incident have not issued any official statement, and the Minister of Interior has not called a press conference to reveal the circumstances of this scale of corruption.

The government replaced the official story with judicial and security leaks. The leak was fundamentally wrong because, from a security perspective, it allowed those involved and the suspects to escape. In principle, no incident can be leaked until investigations, prosecutions and arrests are completed, which is what the “Intelligence Wing” in the “Internal Security Forces” and the “Directorate of Intelligence” in the Army have done in the past while monitoring. Networks involved in terrorist activities. So, the leak seemed strange and was the first hole in the file.

No document
The lack of an official narrative does not provide international organizations and human rights organizations with a document they can build on, as leaks from unknown sources are debatable, and people are still unsure whether published narratives are accurate. Really involved? So, there are other pressing questions about the suspects: Were they taken as witnesses? Or arrested as suspects? Are they involved? If not, who will protect them from defamation? Who can confirm whether they are involved or not? Who protects others who don’t care about the case from the hypothesis of myths?

Also, security sources said that he was followed and harassed for 6 months. If this is proven, how can the government continue for 6 months without arrests to expand the investigation and protect the victims, when it is within the framework of leaks and unresolved information? If the information spread is false, why not deny it? This applies to other information about speedy protection and lack of judicial response to complaints…

Technology fades

Security and media issues are not the only gaps in crisis management. There are questions about technical measures, which are not taken into account, and whether they were actually taken or not is not revealed. The director of the “media program” of the “SMEX” organization, Abdel Manda, pointed out that the Lebanese “still do not know whether or not the official agency has been in contact with the company “Tik Tok”. “We need an official account revealing the company’s response, and whether or not the Lebanese authorities accessed the fake accounts.”

Kattaya told Al-Modon that “authorities will make the account data available if they request it within 90 days of closing the account,” “expanding the investigation and obtaining sensitive information such as geographic location.” Account broadcast, access to messages on accounts, etc., can help investigations, uncover facts and identify additional perpetrators.”

Apart from the “violation of users’ privacy policy” and the “confusion in the circulation of names and information”, Kattaya talks about another negligence “following some people’s justification based on data and leaks reported in the media”. Especially juvenile,” referring to the images of children who appeared in some films, who were subjected to social violence, and who may or may not have been involved in the entire file. The first day regarding discussions on social media sites blaming parents and children without following up on the government’s delay and not considering disclosure of the company’s policies. (Wednesday) He also points to the general literature on privacy policy that banning the TikTok app is not a solution until there are important alternatives to protect the minor, including linking the account to the family account and pursuing judicial action with the company.

At the same time, he insists that communication with international organizations cannot be done by telephone, rather an official communication mechanism is needed to answer all questions, and it does not deny it.

Persistence

The situation is that confusion over the file, its complexities and its official administration, opens the door to persistence without clarification. On Saturday afternoon, WhatsApp groups posted news that Judge Joel Abu Haider, in charge of juvenile cases, had directed the Cybercrime Office to delete several accounts on “Tik Tok” and one on “Instagram”. Their owners were downloading videos with minors, where they mocked what happened to the minor victims, some of whom were asked by hairdressers, “Are you drinking anything?” They were filming the phrase over and over again. Then scenes like escaping from the palace hall are staged.