Region | Lebanon
Focus in Hariri killing shifts to prosecution, but target unclear
Investigators have pored over evidence for four years - a human tooth found at the bombing site, a suicide truck that was stolen in Japan and made its way to Lebanon, reams of phone records and hundreds of interviews.
- AP
- Published: 23:05 February 28, 2009
- Brothers Mahmoud (left) and Ahmad Abdul Al kiss the hands of their Al Ahbash group leader Shaikh Hussam Karakira on Thursday. They were released on Wednesday after being held for over three years in connection with Hariri's murder.
- Image Credit: EPA
Beirut: Investigators have pored over evidence for four years - a human tooth found at the bombing site, a suicide truck that was stolen in Japan and made its way to Lebanon, reams of phone records and hundreds of interviews.
Now the focus in one of the Middle East's most dramatic political assassinations is shifting to prosecution, with the convening today of an international tribunal on the slaying of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
Despite the start of proceedings in the Netherlands, it is still not known who will be accused in the suicide truck bombing that killed Hariri and 22 other people on a seaside street in Beirut on February 14, 2005.
Also unknown is the most politically explosive question - whether the proceedings will implicate Syria's government, which many Lebanese believe was behind the murder of a man who led opposition to the long Syrian military occupation of Lebanon. Syria has denied any involvement.
Most likely the first defendants before the court will be four pro-Syria generals who led Lebanon's police, intelligence service and an elite army unit at the time of the assassination. They are the only people in custody, though they have not been formally charged.
Some in Lebanon doubt the court will ever bring out the full truth, believing it might avoid digging deep to ensure Syria does not react by stirring up trouble in Lebanon and other parts of the region.
Trials could also further polarise Lebanon's politics, feeding the power struggle between pro- and anti-Syria factions. The UN Security Council had to impose the mixed Lebanese-international Special Tribunal after Lebanon's parliament was too divided to approve it.
Edmond Sa'ab, executive editor of the Lebanese newspaper An Nahar, contends the tribunal will be immune from politicisation. "Being an international court is a guarantee in itself against that, and the United Nations' credibility is on the line," he said.
Administrators have said the tribunal will take up to five years to finish its work, and the top UN prosecutor, Daniel Bellemare of Canada, said in a statement yesterday that it will be thorough.
"We will not be deterred by the obstacles or the size of the challenges," Bellemare said. "We will go wherever the evidence leads us. We will leave no stone unturned."
As prime minister, Hariri, a billionaire businessman, was credited with rebuilding downtown Beirut after the 1975-90 civil war, and with trying to limit Syria's influence.
In a country known for political assassinations, his killing stands out for its far-reaching impact. It galvanised opposition to Syria and helped force the end of a 29-year military presence that dominated Lebanese affairs.
But his death also threw Lebanon into turmoil. Anti-Syria factions supported by the West won control of the government but were unable to exert any authority while locked in a struggle with Syria's allies.
Share this article
Popular in News
News Editor's choice
-
A year after 173 defenceless people were killed
Mumbai itself is far from safe from another deadly attack, even though the level of security consciousness of the average Mumbaikar has been raised since 26/11
-
Nato supports Obama's plea
European and other allies to send around 6,000 troops to Afghanistan
-
Official confirms mayor is the suspect
Many witnesses have come forward, justice secretary says
-
Into an oasis of values
A place to snuggle in the warmth of old manners away from the bustle of city life
