Ghassan came to him one day saying that if they paid 100,000 lira, the political cadre would get the refugees out. But Dr. Bitar’s not having it, he’s not paying anyone off, and anyway, he doesn’t need money. The refugees will leave eventually, he’ll get the building back, and then Ghassan will inherit it and become the landlord of several properties. But the boy really should marry… if he doesn’t, who is going to come into all this wealth? We have to get him married off, he kept telling his wife. She should be on the lookout for him, but she doesn’t give a damn. . she spends all her time playing poker — and losing! So, here he is, chasing around after corpses while she gambles. He wonders where she finds the money. She must get it out of Ghassan. Still, he wishes she’d take an interest in marrying him off. . she’s his mother after all. But she’s not interested in anyone but herself really: all she cares about is putting on her makeup in the morning and waiting for evening to come. She often invites him to join them but he doesn’t like playing cards, he’d rather go to bed early. Staying up late shortens life expectancy and it’s not good for your nerves.
The telephone started ringing again and there was work to do. .
It is 7:30 one morning when the telephone rings. Lieutenant Yasseen is on the line. Dr. Bitar dresses quickly, runs a comb through his hair, and, without even bothering to wash his face, grabs his doctor’s bag and hurries down the stairs. He turns the ignition, waits a little while for the engine to warm up, and drives off. When he reaches the UNESCO roundabout, he parks the car a little way from the statue of Habib Abi Shahla, and walks over to shake the officer’s hand. He briefly bends to peer over the mound of garbage, straightens up and goes back to the car, puts on his white doctor’s coat and a mask over his nose and mouth, and returns to the corpse. He once again bends over the corpse, then, squatting down, pulls back the white sheet covering it, lifts one of the hands, and lets it drop. He rolls the corpse over slightly, notices the red ants crawling on the back of the neck, and tries to brush them aside, but they stick to his hands. He straightens up, rubs his hands together and blows on them, then blows on his white coat, and gets back to the job. He turns the corpse over onto its stomach and inspects the back. He stands up again, steps back, squats down once more, turns the corpse over one more time, and finally covers it with the white sheet.
He walks away, reaches his car, opens one of the back passenger doors, takes off his coat and mask and tosses them onto the seat. Lieutenant Yasseen comes up to him. The doctor tells him the murder must have occurred at least four days earlier, as the corpse has begun to putrefy and decompose, and there are clear traces of beating and torture. Lieutenant Yasseen nods.
“When was the corpse found?” the doctor asks.
“Just now — about half an hour ago.”
“That’s impossible. . unless, the corpse was dumped elsewhere initially and then was moved here.”
“What should we do?”
The doctor says the corpse must be removed to the hospital morgue.
“The autopsy should be conducted immediately, before the body decomposes any further and it becomes impossible to determine the circumstances of the crime.” The doctor gets into his car, the officer leans against his rolled-down window, and they finish the conversation. “You should advise the hospital administration that I’m on my way so that they get everything ready.”
The doctor drives off while the paramedics lift the corpse onto a stretcher and carry it to the ambulance. Onlookers gather to watch as the ambulance sounds its siren through the busy streets. “It’s just for show,” ventures a passerby. “Ambulances switch on their sirens even when they’re empty. There’s never anyone in there… just the drivers who’re in a hurry to get somewhere, or want to show off!”
Below is the verbatim text of the report by the forensic pathologist Dr. Marwan Bitar that appeared in the Beirut papers on the morning of April 23, 1980.
Outward appearance:
1. The principal difficulty in examining the body at the site of discovery was due to the extensive burns to the body, inflicted after decease.
2. The naked abdomen is covered in burns, while the trousers over the lower limbs are wet and torn in several places, the tears being caused possibly by large stones or by gunshots. Owing to the absence of gunpowder burns, the projectiles would have been cast from a distance of over one meter. There are clear traces of blood on the back of the neck.
3. Rigor mortis has begun to subside. It sets in within hours of decease, and starts to diminish two to three days later, with the onset of decomposition manifested by bloating from internal gases and the appearance of greenish patches on the abdomen.
Lower abdomen:
1. Bluish hematoma found on the lower left side.
2. Superficial grazing on the stomach and traces of deep cuts, presumed to be from the use of a sharp implement.
Thoracic cage:
1. No bone fractures.
2. Bruises and grazes on the left side of the waist, with narrow longitudinal lacerations, caused by a whip or cane. These must have occurred before death, as the bruising remained after the wounds were opened and cleaned.
3. Circular burn marks on the chest. These clearly occurred before decease, as they are full of pus.
4. Redness on the front of the neck, and the upper frontal third of the chest. This is known as post-mortem lividness, or liver mortis, and is due to sedimentation of the blood, which starts one hour after death and is complete within six hours.
Left hand:
1. Bone contusions and cartilage fractures.
2. Ring finger severed at the base with a sharp implement.
Head:
1. Swelling of the forehead, and jagged gunshot wound measuring seven centimeters long by four wide. No burns or traces of gunpowder around the wound. Fractures to the frontal cranium bone and deep cerebral lesions.
2. Nasal deviation, with bruising and swelling, an indication of occurrence before decease.
3. Gunshot wound on the outer right-hand side of the neck, five centimeters below the earlobe, piercing the right cheek. The wound is only skin-deep and could not have been fatal.
CHAPTER V. The Interrogation
Fahd Badreddin, 26, single; a combatant with the Joint Forces, he is also a third-year student at the Arts Faculty of the Lebanese University. He sleeps on the premises of the party office in Wata Mussaytbeh, as he has no relatives in Beirut. His only part in this story is that he once met Khalil Ahmad Jaber, for all of ten minutes. Being neither a family friend nor an acquaintance, he didn’t attend the funeral or make the traditional condolence visit to the house. Whenever we met, he spoke eloquently about the case, but he clearly had some kind of problem with his eyes. He always kept his left eye covered with the palm of his hand as he spoke, and it was obvious that he had a glass eye on the right-hand side. He is very articulate, as might be expected of a student of Arabic literature. He says that he cannot read for long, and that is why he has suspended his studies.
It was the morning of April 12. I was in the party office, making tea and listening to Western pop music on Radio Monte Carlo; I was getting myself some breakfast-a boiled egg, a few olives, a little cheese — and wasn’t particularly expecting anyone to come by or anything to happen. Everyone was gone and I hadn’t been following events very closely. We spent all our days sitting around the office waiting for our orders, and I was waiting for mine.