Lebanon deserves an end to the long drawn out torment of the UN-backed court, the Special Tribunal for Lebanon which was set up to investigate the 2005 killing of Rafik Hariri. It is due to publish its indictments soon, and extensive leaks have indicated that it may name a member of Hezbollah. The politicisation of the investigation has meant that Hezbollah has already withdrawn from the government, causing it to collapse.
Many of Lebanon's neighbours are anxious to see the country come through this moment without resorting to the all-too endemic violence, which has plagued the fragile state for decades.
Therefore it was good to see a summit in Damascus on Monday which included Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Qatari Emir Shaikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani and Syrian President Bashar Al Assad, who were acting in support of Syrian-Saudi work to solve the crisis and by "achieving consensus among the Lebanese and avoid a deterioration of the situation".
When the tribunal publishes its report, it should be made public, so no one can manipulate the public's ignorance of the tribunal's conclusions. And there will be a huge responsibility on the leaders of Lebanon's main factions to rise above their narrow party interests, which will only bring them short term gain, and focus on the national interest.
