An A-O Special Report

Lebanon in Crisis

The UN's Special Tribunal for Lebanon 
Submits It's Assassination Report To
The World Court For Potential Prosecution

1-17-11

The UN's Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) has submitted its report with sealed indictments on the 2005 assassination of Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri to Pre-trial Judge

The Tribunal's report was allegedly turned over privately, to Pre-Trial Judge Daniel Fransen by Prosecutor Daniel Bellemare. Arab news outlets are also reporting that among those named in the report include Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei for allegedly ordering the assassination so that Hexbollah could take control of the country. There are also reports naming Syria's President Bashar Assad for involvement along with top Syrian and Hezbollah officials.

Meanwhile, Hezbollah is desperately seeking for form a new caretaker government in the wake of last week's government collapse when Hezbollah's cabinet ministers resigned. Lebanon's President is new attempting to form a new government by naming a new caretaker Prime Minister to replace Saad Hariri, who was elected Prime Minister last year. Saad Hariri is the son of the slain Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and has aggressively sought UN justice for his father's murder.

Pre-trial Judge Daniel Fransen will review the STL's report and indictments for the next 6 to 10 weeks before making a decision on whether to proecute those named in the report. Until that decision is reached, the Court will not release the names or details of the report unless or until formal indictments are filed with the Court.

The Court also noted that other reports may be filed for additional indictments as investigations continue into the assassination and other related cases. The ICJ statement upon receiving the report concluded by saying:

"The indictment marks the beginning of the judicial phase of the tribunal's work. The prosecutor and his team will continue to vigorously pursue his mandate with respect to both continued investigative activity and the prosecution of this case."

For more details, see the Wall Street Jouranal article - LINK HERE.

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Key Events Leading To STL's Report

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