The family of beautiful Lebanese pop singer Suzanne Tamim have suddenly dropped their claim that she was murdered by her rich Egyptian ex-lover, the father of one the suspects said in Cairo on Friday. The Mideast media have closely followed the story of the sultry singer who was found with her throat slit in her luxury Dubai apartment in July 2008. Egyptian real-estate magnate Hisham Talaat Moustafa and a former state security officer, Mohsen al-Sokari, have been accused of the killing. Mostafa is alleged to have paid al-Sokari the equivalent of 2 million dollars to kill his former mistress Tamim. Al-Sokari's father, Mounir, told the German Press Agency (dpa) Tamim's family had withdrawn their civil lawsuit against Moustafa and al-Sokari. He denied there had been any financial settlement with the family. He said the Lebanese family had "become convinced that there are other parties" behind Tamim's death, and that they "have evidence" proving it. Al-Sokari's father added that a letter which Tamim's family had sent Egypt's Foreign Ministry would be produced in court on Sunday to be included in the case records. He added that there would be more documents presented later on which will "prove his son's innocence and disclose the identity of the real culprits." In March, Egypt's highest appeals court ordered a retrial for the two men after both had received death sentences from a Cairo court. The case has gripped the regional media, particularly after Mostafa, a former member of Egypt's upper house of parliament, was named in connection with Tamim's death. Dubai police arrested al-Sokari in August 2008 after identifying him on closed-circuit camera images and finding clothes soaked with blood which they they said he had been wearing.
